Four X-Women named AUS volleyball all-stars

2009-10 AUS Women's Volleyball All-Stars Announced
Courtesy Altantic University Sport

(February 17, 2010) HALIFAX, NS - Atlantic University Sport is pleased to announce the 2009-10 women's volleyball all-star teams as selected by the conference's head coaches following regular season play.

The Saint Mary's Huskies, UNB Varsity Reds and Cape Breton Capers each had two players named to the first team to account for six of the seven spots, with Catherine Thornton of the first place StFX X-Women rounding out the squad. Last year's AUS Most Valuable Player Kerri Smit of Saint Mary's is a first team all-star for the second year in a row, as is UNB's Jillian Blanchard.

Smit, a third year outside hitter from Shubenacadie, NS, led the AUS in both kills (3.91 per game) and scoring (4.60 points per game) for the second consecutive year. Smit's teammate, Alison Beaver, also had a solid season, ranking second in kills (3.31 per game) and third in scoring (3.73 points per game).

UNB's Blanchard, now a three-time all-star as well as the 2006-07 Atlantic conference Rookie of the Year, led the V-Reds in kills (2.51 per game), aces (0.28 per game) and digs with 268. Fellow V-Red Tanya Paulin, a second team selection in 2008-09, is the only other player on the first team to have been an all-star previously. Paulin finished fifth in AUS hitting percentage (0.261), fourth in blocks (0.98 per game) and eighth in scoring (3.29 points per game).

StFX's Thornton, who ranked fifth in AUS kills (2.93 per game) and fifth in scoring (3.34 points per game), is the first player from the X-Women program to be named an AUS first team all-star since the 2005-06 season when Lindsay Gosse was selected.

Rounding out the first team selections are Hilary Cummings and libero Kristen Ryan of the fifth place Cape Breton Capers. Ryan, a third year player from Port Hastings, NS, led the conference in total digs with 333 and averaged 4.90 per game. This marks the first time in the history of the Capers program that two CBU players have been named to the first team in the same season.

The 2009-10 women's volleyball first team all-stars are as follows:

AUS First Team All-Stars:
Jillian Blanchard, UNB (4th year - Saint John, NB)
Catherine Thornton, StFX (2nd year - Kobe, Japan)
Kerri Smit, Saint Mary's (3rd year - Shubenacadie, NS)
Alison Beaver, Saint Mary's (3rd year - Truro, NS)
Hilary Cummings, Cape Breton (4th year - Sussex, NB)
Tanya Paulin, UNB (3rd year - Bathurst, NB)
Libero - Kristen Ryan, Cape Breton (3rd year - Port Hastings, NS)

Among the notable selections to this year's second team are three members of the StFX X-Women, including last season's AUS Rookie of the Year Katherine Ryan, 2005-06 AUS Libero of the Year Leah McInnis and middle blocker Alex Quinn.

Ryan had an outstanding sophomore season, finishing fourth in AUS kills (3.01 per game) and tied for sixth in AUS scoring (3.31 points per game). McInnis, who was named the conference's top libero in 2006-06 as a member of the Dalhousie Tigers, finished seventh in the league in digs (3.91 per game) while Quinn, a fifth-year transfer from Saint Mary's, led the X-Women in hitting percentage (0.245) and blocks (0.69 per game). All three players are from Halifax, NS.

Also named the the second team were CBU's Vanessa St. Georges, UNB's Barb Vriends, Dalhousie's Louise Facca and Alyssa Berry of the third place Acadia Axewomen.

Vriends, a fifth year senior from West Covehead, PE, led the conference in blocks this season with 1.33 per game, ranking her third CIS. St. Georges, a third year player from Middleton, NS, led the Capers in kills, hitting percentage, blocks and scoring this season.

Rounding out the second team selections are Acadia's Alyssa Berry and Dalhousie's Louise Facca. Facca, who transferred from Bowling Green University this year, led the Tigers in kills (2.80 per game), scoring (3.50 points per game) and aces (0.41 per game).

The 2009-10 women's volleyball second team all-stars are as follows:

AUS Second Team All-Stars:
Alex Quinn, StFX (5th year - Halifax, NS)
Vanessa St. Georges, Cape Breton (3rd year - Middleton, NS)
Louise Facca, Dalhousie (2nd year - Aurora, ON)
Alyssa Berry, Acadia (2nd year - Yarmouth, NS)
Katherine Ryan, StFX (2nd year - Halifax, NS)
Barb Vriends UNB (5th year - West Covehead, PE)
Libero - Leah McInnis, StFX (5th year - Halifax, NS)

This season marks the second time Atlantic University Sport has recognized an all-rookie team in women's volleyball.

The 2009-10 all-rookie team is as follows:

AUS All-Rookie Team:
Rebecca Glancy, UNB (Toronto, ON)
Meg Rector, Acadia (Milton, ON)
Kristen Bolduc, Acadia (Capreol, ON)
Hilary Sears, Dalhousie (Bible Hill, NS)
Véronique Carroll, Moncton (Moncton, NB)
Emma Hunt, UNB (Whitby, ON)

The 2010 Subway Atlantic University Sport women's volleyball championship is being held this weekend at Saint Mary's University in Halifax, NS. The winner will be crowned AUS champions and will advance to the 2010 CIS Women's Volleyball Championship, March 5-7, hosted by the University of Alberta.

The 2010 Subway Atlantic University Sport women's volleyball championship schedule is as follows:

Friday, February 19th
- Quarter-final #1: Acadia (3rd) vs. Dalhousie (6th), 6:00pm
- Quarter-final #2: UNB (4th) vs. Cape Breton (5th), 8:00pm

Saturday, February 20th
- Semifinal #1: StFX (1st) vs. Lowest Remaining Seed, 4:30pm
- Semifinal #2: Saint Mary's (2nd) vs. Highest Remaining Seed, 7:00pm

Sunday, February 21st
- Championship Game: Semifinal Winners, 2:00pm