SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Furman and Samford each placed three student-athletes on all-conference teams, as the Southern Conference announced its 2014 all-conference and individual award winners on Tuesday.
Regular season champion Furman claimed three first-team all-conference honors, one all-freshman honor and two individual honors. Sophomore middle blocker Ashton Gregory was named the SoCon Player of the Year. Gregory was the only player in the conference to rank in the top five in three different statistical categories as she led the league in hitting percentage (.372) and blocks per set (1.24) while also ranking fourth in kills per set (3.40). She was named Offensive Player of the Week four times this season, most by any player in the conference.
Gregory was joined by teammates Andrea Fisher and Jo Wilks on the first-team All-SoCon squad. Fisher put down a league-best 3.92 kills per set in conference games and Wilks averaged a league-high 11.98 assists per set in league play. Furman libero Meg DeMaar was named to the All-Freshman team to round out the group.
Furman head coach Michelle Young was selected as the 2014 Coach of the Year, her second straight honor. She led the Paladins to a 14-2 conference record to capture its first regular season title since 2009 and earn her fourth career Coach of the Year honor.
ETSU’s Katie Muey was named the Libero of the Year in her first season competing in the SoCon. The senior averaged 5.34 digs per set this season to lead the league by a wide margin. Muey also took home first-team all-conference honors and was joined by her teammate, senior Meredith Hardy. Hardy was the only player besides Gregory to rank in the top 10 in three different statistical categories this season and was named the SoCon Defensive Player of the Month for September.
Samford’s Michaela Reesor and UNCG’s Vicky Harley rounded out the first-team selections. Reesor led the conference overall in kills per set (3.81) in her senior campaign to earn her third straight first-team all-conference honor. Harley ranked sixth in the SoCon in hitting percentage this season with a .313 mark.
Western Carolina and Samford headlined the all-conference second team with two selections each. Catamount seniors Caitlin Piechota and Addy George both picked up the first all-conference honors of their respective careers. Samford libero Chelsi Carter and outside hitter Erin Bognar each received their first all-conference honors as well. They were joined on the second-team all-conference team by Mercer’s Molly Locke, UNCG’s Kelsey Sidney and Wofford’s Taylor Baird.
UNCG’s Ashley Muench received Rayna Taylor Award, given annually to the SoCon Freshman of the Year. The rookie outside hitter averaged just shy of 3.00 kills per set this season and is the first UNCG player to receive the award since Rayna Taylor herself in 1998.
Wofford placed three on the all-freshman team to lead all schools. Bella Santoro, Molly Mayo and Danni Densford each claimed a spot on the team after winning a combined four Freshman of the Week honors during the season. They were joined by DeMaar, Muench, ETSU’s Rylee Milhorn and Western Carolina’s Jo-Leigh Vervelde.
The Southern Conference Volleyball Championship begins Saturday at Fleming Gym on the campus of UNCG in Greensboro, N.C. All nine teams will compete for the SoCon Championship this week with Furman as the No. 1 seed and Samford as the No. 2 seed. The championship match will be held Monday at 6 p.m. ET and broadcast live on ESPN3.
2014 SoCon Volleyball All-Conference Team
Player of the Year - Ashton Gregory, Furman, So., MB
Libero of the Year - Katie Muey, ETSU, Sr.
Freshman of the Year - Ashley Muench, UNCG, OH
Coach of the Year - Michelle Young, Furman
All-Conference First Team
Meredith Hardy, ETSU, Sr., MB
Katie Muey, ETSU, Sr., LIB
Andrea Fisher, Furman, Sr., OH
Ashton Gregory, Furman, So., MB
Jo Wilks, Furman, Jr., S
Vicky Harley, UNCG, Sr., MB
Michaela Reesor, Samford, Sr. OH
All-Conference Second Team
Molly Locke, Mercer, Jr., OH
Kelsey Sidney, UNCG, Sr., OH
Chelsi Carter, Samford, Sr., LIB
Erin Bogar, Samford, So., OH
Caitlin Piechota, Western Carolina, Sr., OH
Addy George, Western Carolina, Sr., MB
Taylor Baird, Wofford, Sr., OH
All-Freshman
Rylee Milhorn, ETSU, OH
Meg DeMaar, Furman, LIB
Ashley Muench, UNCG, OH
Jo-Leigh Vervelde, Western Carolina, S
Bella Santoro, Wofford, OH
Molly Mayo, Wofford, S
Danni Densford, Wofford, MB