Central Arkansas’ Schnars Named Southland Volleyball Player of the Year
Southland Conference
FRISCO, Texas
– Central Arkansas junior outside hitter Heather Schnars was named the 2014 Southland Conference Volleyball Player of the Year by a vote of the league’s head coaches and sports information directors, the league announced Wednesday in conjunction with the release of the all-conference teams.
Schnars led the Sugar Bears to an 18-10 (13-3 SLC) record this season and a No. 2 seed in the upcoming Southland tournament. The Downey, Calif. (Downey H.S.), native finished second in the conference in kills, totaling 425 and averaging 4.21 kills per set, while placing in the top-10 in hitting percentage (.300) and service aces per set (.36). Schnars was even better in conference matches, averaging a hitting a percentage of .338 and taking 4.69 kills per set. The junior is also ranked 32nd nationally in points per set (4.79), 33rd in kills per set and 39th in total kills. Schnars was selected for Southland offensive weekly honors a total of four times this season. This is the second straight year Schnars has earned All-Southland honors; she was also a first-team all-conference selection in 2013.
Stephen F. Austin senior Paige Holland has been named Setter of the Year after helping to lead the Ladyjacks to a perfect 16-0 league record and a No. 1 seed in this year’s tournament. The Magnolia, Texas (Magnolia H.S.), native finished fifth in the conference in assists with 9.78 per set and 1,017 total. Holland had even higher marks in conference matches as she averaged 11.60 assists per set and totaled 603, second in the league.
Central Arkansas senior Shelbee Berringer was named Libero of the Year after receiving all-conference honorable mention last season. The Dickinson, Texas (Dickinson H.S.), native has led the Sugar Bears to a 52-6 conference record since becoming the starting libero three seasons ago. The senior finished fifth in the conference in digs this season, posting 4.46 per set while totaling 450. Berringer was also named Southland Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 6.
Houston Baptist junior middle blocker and second-team selection Allison Doerpinghaus has been chosen Newcomer of the Year. The Palo Alto, Calif. (Gunn H.S.), native and Eastern Washington transfer helped lead the Huskies to a 9-7 league record and a No. 6 seed in the upcoming conference tournament. Doerpinghaus finished fifth in the conference in hitting percentage (.320) and second in blocks, averaging 1.26 per set with 134 total. The junior was even better in conference play, finishing third in hitting percentage (.354) and recorded 73 blocks at 1.35 per set. Doerpinghaus ranks 29th nationally in total blocks and 46th in blocks per set.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi’s Kristyn Nicholson was selected Freshman of the Year after helping lead the Islanders to a 11-5 league mark and the third seed at this year’s conference tournament, tying the highest seed in program history. The Lewisville, Texas (Lewisville H.S.), native finished sixth in the conference in assists with 9.45 per set and 1,030 total, along with being third in service aces. Nicholson recorded 59 assists in a four-set match against Houston Baptist, the most among all players in a four-set match season. She also tallied the most aces by an individual player in any match this season with eight against Nicholls. The freshman is ranked 28th in the nation in service aces with 42 total, while ranked 46th in aces per set averaging .39.
Stephen F. Austin head coach Debbie Humphreys was named the Katrinka Jo Crawford Coach of the Year after guiding the Ladyjacks to their first undefeated conference season since 2006 and a 23-7 overall record. In her 27th season, Humphreys’ team clinched the Southland regular season title for the first time since clinching a share of the title in 2008 and their eighth overall. Humphreys is second all-time in the Southland in victories and third all-time in winning percentage (.659), claiming more than 300 conference wins and 595 total wins. Now with her fifth coach of the year award, Humphreys has been selected for the honor more than any other current head coach or current member institution and is second all-time. Humphreys was also named coach of the year in 1992, 1994, 2004 and 2006.
Stephen F. Austin had four first-team all-conference selections and one second-team selection, while Central Arkansas claimed three first-team selections. Sam Houston State had two first-team selections as Houston Baptist earned both a first-team and second-team honoree. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Northwestern State each claimed one first-team selection. Lamar had two second-team honorees, while Southeastern Louisiana and Nicholls both earned one second-team selection.
The 2014 All-Southland Conference teams are comprised of 12 first-team and six second-team members. Teams are chosen by vote of the league’s head coaches and sports information directors. To receive honorable mention, a player must receive votes from 25 percent of the league’s head coaches and sports information directors
. Recipients are placed by the number of votes received.
The 2014 Southland Conference Volleyball Tournament gets underway Friday in Natchitoches, La., with four quarterfinal matches. The quarterfinal and semifinal matches of the tournament will be streamed live on the Southland Conference Digital Network, available at
Southland.org and on the league’s Apple and Android mobile and tablet apps. The championship match will be carried exclusively on ESPN3 on Sunday, Nov. 23, at 2:05 p.m., with David Saltzman and Brooke Bentley on the call.
2014 All-Southland Conference Volleyball Teams
First Team
|
Name |
Class |
Pos. |
School |
Hometown |
|
Heather Schnars2 |
Jr. |
OH |
Central Arkansas |
Downey, Calif. |
|
Deveney Wells-Gibson3 |
Sr. |
OH |
Sam Houston State |
San Antonio, Texas |
|
Jill Ivy3 |
Sr. |
RS |
Stephen F. Austin |
Katy, Texas |
|
Brianna Brink |
Sr. |
RS |
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi |
Corona, Calif. |
|
Jessica Wooten |
So. |
OH |
Houston Baptist |
Humble, Texas |
|
Paige Holland |
Sr. |
S |
Stephen F. Austin |
Magnolia, Texas |
|
Jacque Allen |
Jr. |
MB |
Stephen F. Austin |
Fort Worth, Texas |
|
Mackenzie Neely |
Sr. |
RS |
Northwestern State |
Dripping Springs, Texas |
|
Justice Walker |
So. |
MB |
Stephen F. Austin |
Fort Worth, Texas |
|
Shelbee Berringer |
Sr. |
L |
Central Arkansas |
Dickinson, Texas |
|
Evie Grace Singleton |
So. |
OH |
Central Arkansas |
Little Rock, Ark. |
|
Michelle Griffith |
So. |
S |
Sam Houston State |
The Woodlands, Texas |
Second Team
|
Name |
Class |
Pos. |
School |
Hometown |
|
Cortney Moore |
Jr. |
MB |
Lamar |
Houston, Texas |
|
OJ Olson2 |
Jr. |
L |
Stephen F. Austin |
Cedar Park, Texas |
|
Allison Doerpinghaus |
Jr. |
MB |
Houston Baptist |
Palo Alto, Calif. |
|
Morgan Todd |
Jr. |
L |
Southeastern Louisiana |
Mandeville, La. |
|
Chelsea Grant |
So. |
MB |
Lamar |
Killeen, Texas |
|
Kaci Eaton |
R-So. |
OH |
Nicholls |
Spicewood, Texas |
2 Two-time all-conference
3 Three-time all-conference
Individual Award Winners
Player of the Year: Heather Schnars, Central Arkansas
Setter of the Year: Paige Holland, Stephen F. Austin
Libero of the Year: Shelbee Berringer, Central Arkansas
Newcomer of the Year: Allison Doerpinghaus, Houston Baptist
Freshman of the Year: Kristyn Nicholson, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
Katrinka Jo Crawford Coach of the Year: Debbie Humphreys, Stephen F. Austin
Honorable Mention: Kalynn Egea, L, Nicholls; Kayla Armer, S, Houston Baptist; Kristyn Nicholson, S, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi; Stacey DiFrancesco, OH, Northwestern State; Ashley Phelps, OH, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi; Jennie Loerch, OH, Abilene Christian; Angelique Vidaurri, RS, UIW; Rachel Cagnina, MB, McNeese State; Glynna Johnson, MB, Northwestern State.