Four Huskers Named AVCA All-Americans

Lincoln - Four Nebraska volleyball players were honored Wednesday morning, as the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) announced its 2011 All-America team. Junior outside hitter Gina Mancuso led the charge as a first-team selection, while junior outside hitter Hannah Werth, sophomore right side hitter Morgan Broekhuis and junior setter Lauren Cook were chosen as honorable-mention selections.

Nebraska continues to lead the nation with 71 AVCA All-America certificates (first, second and third team) by 35 athletes with at least one Husker earning All-America honors in 30 consecutive seasons. In 12 seasons at Nebraska, Head Coach John Cook has coached his players to 36 All-America honors.

A key asset to the Huskers this season, Mancuso did not disappoint in her junior year as she was named an unanimous All-Big Ten First-Team pick and led the Huskers in kills, totaling 407 for an average of 3.60 kills per set. She also notched 2.66 digs per set. Her efforts kept her ranked in the top ten in the Big Ten Conference for total kills during the entire season. She notched at least 10 kills in 27 matches during 2011 and posted a career-high 25 kills against Kansas State. She was also named the Big Ten Player-of-the-Week two times in 2011. Mancuso is the latest in the long line of successful attackers at Nebraska, as a total of 24 All-America certificates have been earned by Husker outside hitters since 1996.

Werth earned honorable mention All-America honors after a stellar junior season. The Springfield, Ill., native averaged 2.80 kills per set and 3.11 digs per set, while ranking second on the team in total digs with 348 on the year. Werth tabbed at least 10 kills in 18 matches, while notching at least 10 digs in 19 matches. She produced 11 double-doubles as a junior and was a two-time Big Ten Player-of-the-Week as well as the Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week on Nov. 22.

Broekhuis earned honorable-mention All-America honors for the first time, as she had a breakout year for the Huskers during her sophomore campaign, averaging 3.04 kills per set and a total of 344 kills while notching 1.58 digs per set. In just her second year as a starter, she tabbed at least 10 kills in 19 matches and a hitting percentage of .247. She recorded a total of 97 blocks in 2011, while hitting at least .300 in eight matches this season, including a season-best .692 against Jackson State. She tabbed a career-high 22 kills at Michigan on Oct. 1.

Cook put together a strong season in her first full year as a starter to earn honorable-mention All-America accolades. She averaged 11.03 assists per set, .49 kills and 2.79 digs per set. She ranked fourth in the league in assists, while notching a team-best 18 double-doubles (assists-digs). Cook helped Nebraska hit .300 or better in 10 matches, including a season-high .438 against Jackson State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. She totaled 50 or more assists in seven matches, including a career-high 62 assists against Kansas State.

2011 AVCA DIVISION I FIRST-TEAM ALL-AMERICA

 

Name		School	Position	Year	Height	Hometown
Kelly	Murphy*@	University of Florida	S/H	SR	6'2	Wilmington, IL
Deja	McClendon^	Penn State University	OH	SO	6'1	Louisville, KY
Gina	Mancuso	University of Nebraska	OH	JR	6'1	Omaha, NE
Kanani	Danielson*$+	University of Hawaii	OH	SR	5'10	Ewa Beach, HI
Alex	Jupiter*%	University of Southern California	OH	SR	6'3	Paris, France
Rachael	Kidder	UCLA	OH	JR	6'3	Moorpark, CA
Natalie	Hagglund	University of Southern California	L/DS	SO	5'9	Encinitas, CA
Colleen	Ward^	University of Illinois	OH	SR	6'2	Naperville, IL
Ariel	Turner	Purdue University	OH	JR	6'1	Highlands Ranch, CO
Rachael	Adams*	University of Texas	MB	SR	6'2	Cincinnati, OH
Alison	Landwehr	Iowa State University	S	JR	6'0	St. Louis, MO
Kim	Hill	Pepperdine University	RS/Opp.	SR	6'4	Portland, OR
Kendall	Bateman^	University of Southern California	S	SR	5'11	Manhattan Beach, CA
Bailey	Webster	University of Texas	OH	SO	6'3	Baltimore, MD

   

2011 AVCA DIVISION I SECOND-TEAM ALL-AMERICA

Name		School	Position	Year	Height	Hometown
Bianca	Rowland	University of Washington	MB	SR	6'0	Lynnwood, WA
Tyler	Henderson^	University of Tulsa	OH	JR	5'10	Oklahoma City, OK
Ashley	Wittman	University of Minnesota	OH	SO	6'0	Shakopee, MN
Kelsey	Robinson	University of Tennessee	OH	SO	6'2	Bartlett, IL
Kristy	Jaeckel	University of Florida	OH	SR	6'2	Littleton, CO
Lane	Carico#	University of Miami	OH	SR	5'11	Manhattan Beach, CA
Emily	Hartong	University of Hawaii	MB	SO	6'2	Los Alamitos, CA
Tarah	Murrey*	University of California	OH	SR	6'3	El Cerrito, CA
Bre	Payton^	University of Northern Iowa	S	SR	5'8	Waterloo, IA
Katie	Slay	Penn State University	MB	SO	6'6	Raleigh, NC
Haley	Eckerman	University of Texas	OH	FR	6'3	Waterloo, IA
Carly	Jenson	Iowa State University	OH	SR	5'10	Omaha, NE
Jekaterina	Stepanova	Florida State University	OH	SR	6'2	Riga, Latvia
Stephanie	Klefot	University of Kentucky	L/DS	JR	5'6	Louisville, KY

 

 

 

2011 AVCA DIVISION I THIRD-TEAM ALL-AMERICA

 

Name		School	Position	Year	Height	Hometown
Lauren	Wicinski	Northern Illinois University	OH	SO	6'1	Geneva, IL
Lola	Arslanbekova	University of Louisville	OH	JR	5'11	Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Megan	Campbell	University of Dayton	MB	SO	6'1	Versailles, OH
Alaina	Bergsma	University of Oregon	OH	JR	6'3	Chandler, AZ
Ariel	Scott	Penn State University	RS/Opp.	SO	6'4	Ridgewood, NJ
Lauren	Williams#	University of Southern California	MB	SR	6'4	Houston, TX
Katelyn	Steffan	Colorado State University	OH	SR	6'4	Dickinson, ND
Jenilee	Rathje	Michigan State University	OH	SR	5'11	Mount Pleasant, MI
Megan	Plourde	Colorado State University	MB	JR	6'3	Somerset, WI
Brianne	Barker#	University of Oklahoma	S	SR	5'9	Amarillo, TX
Michelle	Bartsch#	University of Illinois	OH	SR	6'3	Maryville, IL
Lucy	Charuk	University of Houston	MB	SR	6'2	Tswwassen, British Columbia
Lisa	Henning	University of Missouri	OH	SO	6'1	Blue Springs, MO
Kim	Maroon	Villanova University	L/DS	SR	5'8	Virginia Beach, VA