Volleyball Cougars collect AVCA Honors
Tuesday, December 08, 2009
Columbia, Mo. – The American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) announced its women's volleyball All-Region and All-America teams for the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), as selected by the NAIA Volleyball All-America Selection Committee. Cougars Maria Omondi, Cate Eckhardt, Paula Ferreira and Tally Mattos along with head coach Melinda Wrye-Washington were recognized.
Wrye-Washington, who just finished her 10th season at the helm, was named the Midwest Region Coach of the Year by the AVCA. Melinda’s record sits at 388-51 (.884) at Columbia. She has led her teams to five top-four finishes in the NAIA National Tournament, including being crowed the 2001 National Champions.
Maria Omondi was named the Midwest Region Player of the Year and also collected First Team All-America honors in the AVCA. She is a two-time first team all-conference recipient and was named the AMC Player of the Year this season. In four years with the Cougars, Maria has notched 1045 kills in 2,186 attempts for a career hitting percentage of 0.313. This season Maria hit an NAIA leading .414 and put down 381 kills.
Cate Eckhardt, also named to the All-Region team, was a second team All-America recipient. In her first season with the Cougars, Eckhardt took the conference by storm, earning Newcomer of the Year honors as well as first team. Cate played in 134 sets for Columbia, leading the team with 508 kills. Eckhardt was also third on the team with 335 digs and second on the team in aces with 52.
Paula Ferreira, a freshman setter from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, earned Third Team All-America and First Team All-Region honors. Paula dished out 1471 assists this season, averaging over 11 assists per set. Paula also accumulated 174 kills and 55 service aces in her first college season. Ferreira was named AMC Setter and Freshman of the Year as well as taking home first team accolades in the conference.
Tally Mattos collected First Team All-Region and Honorable Mention All-America honors. The Cougar libero was also named to the American Midwest Conference first team in 2009. Mattos, a junior, ended the season with 494 digs in 123 sets. In just two seasons with Columbia, Tally has almost 1,500 digs to her credit.
The mission of the American Volleyball Coaches Association is to advance the development of the sport of volleyball by providing all coaches with educational programs, a forum for opinion exchange and recognition opportunities.