SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Southern Conference named the volleyball players of the week for the matches played the week of September 27. Georgia Southern's Parker Small and Ashley Roe were named Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively. The Freshman of the Week honors went to Chattanooga's Jennifer Kuroski. The players of the week are voted on by the league office.
Small, a junior from Charlotte, N.C., led the Eagles to two conference wins this week against Wofford and Furman. In the two matches, Small hit .491 -- .632 against Wofford and .412 against Furman. In the five-set match against the Terriers, Small committed no errors on 19 attempts with 12 kills. Against the Paladins, the middle hitter accumulated 16 kills on 34 attempts and only two errors. In the 10 games on the weekend, Small committed only two attack errors and was second on the team in kills. She also owned the highest hitting percentage on the weekend for the Eagles.
Roe, a junior libero from Campbell, Calif., was an important factor defensively in both the five-set conference wins for the Eagles. Roe posted 26 digs in both matches to total 52 in 10 games, averaging 5.20 per set. Her 52 digs led the team in the back court over the weekend. Roe's 26 digs in both matches also marked a season- and career-high for the libero. Her previous season-high was 22 digs against Miami (FL).
The SoCon's Freshman of the Week award went to Jennifer Kuroski from Chattanooga. The Acworth, Ga., native paced the Lady Mocs offensively over the weekend with 15 kills while only registering two errors. Kuroski also compiled 11 digs in five sets of action. The outside hitter posted a team-high nine kills at UNCG and did not commit a mistake for a season-best .529 percentage. Kuroski came off the bench against the Spartans and recorded all nine of her kills in the final two sets.
Also nominated for Offensive Player of the Week were Appalachian State's Meghann Forshey, College of Charleston's Elyse Chubb, The Citadel's Tatum Jestila, Elon's Sarah Schermerhorn, Furman's Natalie Braun, UNCG's Ariel Newman, Samford's Elizabeth Neisler, Western Carolina's Amanda Chaparro and Wofford's Catelyn Amende.
Nominated for Defensive Player of the Week were Appalachian State's Alison Blasingame, College of Paige Johnson, The Citadel's Jessica Maas, Elon's Ali Deatsch, Furman's Elle Ross, UNCG's Caley Redden, Samford's Alexis Bauer, Western Carolina's Leah Best and Wofford's Reagan Styles.
Nominated for Freshmen of the Week were Appalachian State's Lauren Brown, College of Charleston's Emily Neideffer, The Citadel's Erin Bucherl, Furman's Sarah McCarthy, Georgia Southern's Enjoli Johnson, UNCG's Kellie Orewiler, Samford's Katie Murphy, Western Carolina's Leah Best and Wofford's Bekah Dorsey.
2010 Volleyball Offensive Players of the Week
Week 1 - Whitney Russell, College of Charleston
Week 2 - Hillary Fountain, Samford
Week 3 - Courtney Barnes, Chattanooga
Week 4 - Kelly Kirby, Furman
Week 5 - Parker Small, Georgia Southern
2010 Volleyball Defensive Players of the Week
Week 1 - Kayren Finney, UNCG
Week 2 - Alison Blasingame, Appalachian State
Week 3 - Paige Johnson, College of Charleston
Week 4 - Paula Passmore, Chattanooga
Week 5 - Ashley Roe, Georgia Southern
2010 Volleyball Freshmen of the Week
Week 1 - Katie Murphy, Samford
Week 2 - Sarah McCarthy, Furman
Week 3 - Erin Bucherl, The Citadel
Week 4 - Kellie Orewiler, UNCG
Week 5 - Jennifer Kuroski, Chattanooga