WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL LANDS FOUR ON GNAC ALL-CONFERENCE SQUAD

WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL LANDS FOUR ON GNAC ALL-CONFERENCE SQUAD

Nov. 16, 2011

BOSTON, MASS. - Four players from the Emmanuel College women's volleyball team have been selected by the Great Northeast Athletic Conference as members of the 2011 GNAC All-Conference team, it was announced on November 8 by the commissioner's office. Senior middle hitter Rebecca Stanton (Quincy, Mass.) has been selected as a member of the GNAC First Team, senior setter Kathryne Olsen (Fairhaven, Mass.) has been selected as a member of the GNAC Second Team, senior outside hitter Jenna Ross (Centerburg, Ohio) has been selected as a member of the GNAC Third Team and junior libero Yun-Ting Lee (Cambridge, Mass.) has been selected as a member of the GNAC Third Team while also being honored as the conference's Defensive Player of the Year. This marks the first time since the 2006 season that four individuals from the Saints were honored by the conference during the same season.

Stanton enjoyed one of the greatest seasons in Emmanuel women's volleyball history, finishing the campaign with a program-record 500 kills to rank first overall in the conference while the total was the second highest single-season mark in the history of the GNAC. The Quincy, Mass. native was extremely effective from the field, recording a .427 hitting percentage to again lead the conference while ranking second in the nation among NCAA Division III players. Stanton played in and started all 37 matches for the Saints, collecting 10 or more kills in 30 matches on the year including a stretch of 13 consecutive matches from Oct. 8 through Nov. 1 in which Emmanuel posted an 11-2 record during the streak. Earlier this season, Stanton recorded the 1,000th kill of her career on Oct. 15 vs. Albertus Magnus College.

For her play this season, Stanton has also been selected a member of the New England Women's Volleyball Association (NEWVA) All-New England Senior Team and will compete in the Senior Classic on Sunday, Dec. 4 at the Clark Athletic Center Gym on the campus of the University of Massachusetts Boston.

The middle hitter will go down as one of the greatest hitters in Emmanuel College history, finishing her storied four-year career with 1,166 kills to rank second all-time. She ranks second all-time in hitting percentage (.337), total blocks (360) and sets played (429).

Olsen caps her career with her third straight GNAC All-Conference appearance, earning Second Team honors again after first earning them as a sophomore and third Team honors last season. The setter dished out a team-best 604 assists over 33 matches, averaging 5.25 helpers per set. The Fairhaven, Mass native served as the Saints utility player all season, passing and hitting when called upon and the senior excelled in the roll notching 187 kills and 289 digs to rank third on the team in both categories. Olsen would dish out 10 or more assists in 29 matches on the season including 20+ in 15 contests.

Olsen will go down as one of the greatest setters in Emmanuel College history, finishing her four-year career with 2,843 assists to rank second all-time. Over her career, Olsen posted a total of 954 digs to rank fifth all-time at EC while her 421 kills rank ninth all-time. An efficient hitter, Olsen would finish her career with a .292 hitting percentage to rank tied for fourth among program leaders and in her four seasons, the senior played in a total of 424 sets to rank tied for third all-time.

Ross put together one of the best all-around seasons in the program's history, reaching several career milestones along the way. The outside hitter earns a spot on the GNAC Third Team after becoming Emmanuel's all-time leader in digs on Oct. 18 vs. Simmons College. The senior would then become just the fourth player in the program's history to record 1,000 kills, achieving the feat on Nov. 1 in the opening round of the GNAC tournament in a 3-1 win vs. Saint Joseph's College (ME), smashing down 21 kills to accomplish the feat at home. Ross would finish the year ranking second on the team in kills (376), second in digs (460), second in aces (39) and fourth in total blocks (24).

With her 1,000th career kill, Ross became the only play in the program's history to notch more than 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs. She finishes her career as the program's leader with 1,586 digs, first all-time in sets played (443) while rankings fourth all-time in kills with 1,023. Ross also ranks seventh all-time in service aces (173) and fourth in matches played (127).

Lee becomes the first player in the program's history to take home the conference's top defensive honor after being named the GNAC Defensive Player of the Year to go along with a Third Team All-Conference selection. Serving as the team's main libero all season, Lee registered a remarkable 675 digs which shattered the Emmanuel single-season record while also ranking 17th in the NCAA among Division III players. The junior tallied 10 or more digs in 31 matches, 20 or more in 13 contests and an incredible 30+ digs in six efforts. As one of the team's main passers, Lee posted a .932 reception percentage to rank first on the team.

Through three seasons, the junior ranks fourth all-time in digs with 1,305 to her name while ranking first all-time with an average of 4.71 digs per set.

The Saints wrapped up the 2011 campaign with a 21-16 overall record, posting a 20 win season for the first time since the 2006 season. During the regular season, Emmanuel finished with a 10-3 mark in GNAC play to earn the \#3 seed in the GNAC tournament before falling in the Semifinal round to the eventual champions in Rivier College. Emmanuel was able to secure a spot in the 2011 ECAC New England Championship field as the \#6 seed, earning the honor for the second time in the last three seasons.