MOBILE, Ala. – Guided by second-year head coach Amy Hendrichovsky, the 2013 University of South Alabama volleyball season was marked by numerous individual and team highlights. Here is a recap of some of the most notable milestones.
After being hampered by injuries through much of the first half of the 2013 campaign, the Jaguars were still able to post their most wins (14) in nearly 20 years and record nine Sun Belt victories, the most ever by the program in a season. USA also made its first postseason appearance since the 2010 season this past year, earning the fifth seed at the Sun Belt Conference Championships, the highest seed for the program since being seeded fifth at the 1995 league tourney.
South Alabama also featured the youngest roster in the conference this past season with 12 of the 14 members either freshmen or sophomores. As the season progressed, the group steadily improved, ending the regular season as the second hottest team in the SBC, trailing only regular season champ Western Kentucky. USA closed out the regular season by winning seven of its last nine matches.
The Jaguars received outstanding individual performances throughout the season from several players. Highlighting that list were a pair of freshmen hitters – Mechell Daniel and Jessica Lewis – which formed one of the top offensive duos in the Sun Belt Conference.
Daniel was named the Sun Belt Conference's Freshman of the Year, while she also picked up first-team all-conference honors. Lewis also earned second-team all-Sun Belt accolades. The duo became the first pair of Jaguars to earn all-conference honors since the 2000 season when Kelly Weiler and Holly Miller were each named to the league's second team. Daniel was the first player to be selected first-team all-SBC since Tonia Hatfield's award during the 1995 campaign.
Daniel was also just the second South Alabama player to be named as an individual award winner, joining Marei Lirette who was named the conference's player of the year during the 1988 season. The 6-2 freshman from Chelmsford, England, came in and made an immediate impact in the Jaguar line up this season. Her 423 kills were the most ever by a freshman at USA and also ranked as sixth-most in a single. Daniel led USA and ranked third in the Sun Belt in both kills (3.81) and points (4.33) per set. She was even better against league competition as she averaged 4.03 kills per set.
The freshman opposite side/outside hitter recorded a team-high 14 double-doubles on the year, including 13 in conference play and posted double figure kill tallies in 24 of her matches. In a 3-1 road victory at Troy in the final month of the season, Daniel posted a career-high 28 kills versus the Trojans – her fourth 20-kill match of the season. The 28 kills were also the most since Selena Chidester's 29 kills versus Troy back on Sept. 4, 2001. That tally also tied for sixth-most by a player in the league this season.
Daniel was named the Sun Belt's Freshman of the Week on a league-best four occasions this season and became the first conference player to ever be named both the top frosh and offensive player of the week when she earned the multiple honors on Nov. 11. The offensive player of the week honor marked the first time a Jaguar had received the award since Juliana Almeida's selection back on Sept. 6, 2010.
Lewis also came in and made an immediate contribution for South Alabama in her first collegiate season. The Huntsville, Ala., ranked fifth in the league in kills (3.42) and points (3.80). She was named the SBC Freshman of the Week three times – second-most in the conference – throughout the course of the season, including earning the inaugural award back on Sept. 2. Lewis also earned the accolade in back-to-back weeks on Oct. 14 and Oct. 21.
South Alabama took eight of the league's freshman of the week awards, including picking up the honor six-consecutive weeks. Along with Daniel and Lewis' selections, Mallory Moore also earned the honor on Oct. 28.
Despite missing four weeks and 10 matches during the season due to a foot injury, Lewis still managed to record 260 kills. She posted two double-doubles during the season, including a career-best 20-kill, 10-dig match in South Alabama's near road upset of regular season champion Western Kentucky. Lewis led USA offensively 11 times and posted double figures in 17 of her 19 matches played. She also had eight matches of 15 kills or more.
After the loss of returning starting libero Jenna Hassell due to a knee injury over the summer, freshman defensive specialist Abby Baker stepped into the vacated spot and excelled. During her first collegiate season, Baker posted 409 digs – the eighth-most in a season – and her 3,79 digs per set average not only ranked among the conference leaders, but also fourth all-time on the single-season charts. Baker recorded six matches of 20 or more digs, including a season-high 26 in the regular-season finale at Georgia State on Nov. 17. The 26 digs were third-most ever in a four-set match. The Whitewater, Ga., native also had 23 digs in USA's three-set match at Texas-Arlington (10/18).
Along the front line, Amber Wyatt, the lone junior of the group, posted career numbers. Wyatt led the club with106 total blocks and 94 block assist. The 106 blocks were tied for 10th most in a season with former Jag Carla Mathis (1985), while her 94 block assists were tied with Kenisha McQuirter for eighth. Wyatt ranked third in the Sun Belt with 1.15 blocks per set – the most since Keturah Carter's mark of 1.17 back during the 1989 season and fifth-highest average for a year at USA.
With no graduating seniors, the future of the Jaguar volleyball program in the league is certainly bright.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
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