Anderson, Gillard Garner Volleyball Week Seven Awards
Southland Conference
FRISCO, Texas - Central Arkansas right side hitter Samantha Anderson and Houston Baptist middle blocker Blair Gillard are the Southland Conference Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, the league announced Monday. Southland Players of the Week are presented by
UniversalCoin.com.
Anderson earned 43 kills on 75 attempts on the week in wins against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (8-10, 5-2 SLC) and UIW (3-11, 2-5 SLC). Gillard tied a program record for blocks in a three-set match with nine stuffs in a straight-set win over Southeastern Louisiana (2-17, 0-5 SLC).
The Sugar Bears (16-2, 5-1 SLC) travel to Louisiana this week for matches at Nicholls (3-17, 1-6 SLC) on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. and McNeese (12-9, 4-3 SLC) on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. The Huskies host league-leader Sam Houston State (9-9, 6-0 SLC) on Thursday at 7 p.m. before welcoming Abilene Christian (6-12, 2-4 SLC) on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Offensive Player of the Week: Samantha Anderson, Central Arkansas – Junior – Right Side – Tyler, Texas
Samantha Anderson helped push Central Arkansas’ winning streak to five matches with a 2-0 week at home. The junior from Tyler, Texas, led the Sugar Bears with a career-high 26 kills to defeat Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 3-2, snapping the Islanders’ 43-match win streak over Southland opponents. The right side hitter hit .458 for the match and added five blocks to hand Texas A&M-Corpus Christi its first loss to a Southland opponent in 1,047 days. Anderson then posted a match-high 17 kills and three blocks in UCA’s sweep over UIW on Saturday to finish the week with a .467 hitting percentage with 43 kills (averaging 5.38 kills per set). Anderson leads the league in hitting percentage and ranks fourth in kills per set, the only player to rank in the top ten in both categories. This is her second Southland Offensive Player of the Week award of the season.
Honorable Mention: Reagan Rogers, Northwestern State; Bailey Banks, Houston Baptist; Taylor Cunningham, Sam Houston State.
Defensive Player of the Week: Blair Gillard, Houston Baptist – Senior – Middle Blocker – La Grange, Texas
Blair Gillard averaged 2.33 blocks per set in Houston Baptist’s straight-set wins on the road against Southeastern Louisiana and New Orleans, holding the two teams to a combined .102 hitting percentage. The senior’s nine blocks against the Lions tied a Husky school record for stuffs in a three-set match. She added four kills and three digs on the night. The La Grange, Texas, middle blocker nearly reversed her stat line with five blocks, two digs and nine kills in Saturday’s sweep over the Privateers.
Honorable Mention: Lexus Cain, Stephen F. Austin; Channing Burleson, Northwestern State; Emily Doss, Central Arkansas.
Southland weekly award winners are nominated and voted upon by each school’s sports information director. Voting for one’s own athlete is not permitted. To earn honorable mention, a student-athlete must appear on 25 percent of ballots.