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Pac-12 announces volleyball All-Conference honors

Dec 2, 2014

SAN FRANCISCO - The Pac-12 Conference announced its postseason volleyball awards today. WASHINGTON senior outside hitter Krista Vansant was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year for the second-straight year, becoming just the fifth player in league history to do so. OREGON STATE outside hitter Mary-Kate Marshall was tabbed the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, the first-ever Beaver to earn the honor. STANFORD junior Madi Bugg was voted the Pac-12 Setter of the Year for the second-straight year, the first player to do so in the four-year history of the award. WASHINGTON junior Cassie Strickland was honored as the Libero of the Year for UW’s first such honor. Oregon State head coach Taras Liskevych was named the Pac-12 Coach of the Year, becoming the first OSU coach to earn the award since 1990. The All-Pac-12 and All-Freshman teams were announced, as well. 

PLAYER OF THE YEAR – KRISTA VANSANT, WASHINGTON
Vansant capped a standout career at Washington with her second-consecutive Pac-12 Player of the Year honor. The 2013 AVCA National Player of the Year and Honda Award winner for volleyball, the outside hitter also earned 2014 Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year for volleyball as announced on Monday. Vansant also set a new career record for player of the week honors, earning 10 over her tenure as a Husky. She led the Huskies to a No. 3 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, tying a program best, and a 29-2 overall record, setting a new best for number of wins in the regular season. A native of Redlands, Calif., Vansant finished the regular season third in the Pac-12 in kills per set (4.65) and points per set (5.30), as well as sixth in service aces per set (0.28).

FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR – MARY-KATE MARSHALL, OREGON STATE 
Marshall ended the regular season with the Oregon State freshman kills record, tallying 486 in her first year as a Beaver. A five-time Pac-12 Freshman of the Week recipient, which ties for second-most all-time, she was the only freshman or underclassman ranking in the top 10 in kills per set in the Pac-12, averaging seventh with a mark of 4.23. The Coppell, Texas, native hit the 20-plus-kill mark in nine matches, posting double-digit kills in all but two matches. She also recorded 274 digs, the third-best total on the OSU roster and eighth most by a freshman in Oregon State history. 

SETTER OF THE YEAR – MADI BUGG, STANFORD 
For the second-straight year, Bugg finished the regular season leading the Pac-12 in assists per set, averaging 12.02, a mark that also leads the nation. The junior from Apex, N.C., led a Stanford offense that averaged 14.74 kills per set and a hitting percentage of .316, marks that are both ranked third in the country. The top-ranked Cardinal earned the No. 1-overall seed in this year’s NCAA Tournament after earning the Pac-12 title and setting a school record for wins in a season with a 29-1 record. 

LIBERO OF THE YEAR – CASSIE STRICKLAND, WASHINGTON 
A junior from Huntington Beach, Calif., Strickland earns the first Libero of the Year honor for Washington after anchoring a staunch UW defense that held opponents to a .175 hitting percentage, the lowest in the Pac-12. She averaged 3.82 digs per set for the Huskies, including a 4.07 average in Pac-12 play that ranked ninth in the league’s Conference-only statistics. Strickland also notched 44 service aces for an average of 0.41 aces per set, which was second in the league. 

COACH OF THE YEAR – TARAS LISKEVYCH, OREGON STATE
In his 10th year with the Beavers and 19th season as a Division I head coach, Liskevych led Oregon State to its first NCAA Tournament berth since 2001 and third overall. On the heels of a 2013 season that saw the Beavers finish last in the Pac-12 with a 9-22 overall mark, Liskevych’s 2014 squad finished 19-12 with a 9-11 mark in league play that included four wins over ranked opponents. Oregon State finished the regular season ranked second in the league in blocks per set (2.64), third in digs per set (16.22) and third in service aces per set (1.22). Liskevych owns a 117-183 record with the Beavers and a 384-267-3 overall record as a Division I head coach.

2014 ALL-PAC-12 WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL TEAM

PLAYER, TEAM POS. HT. YR. HOMETOWN
Inky Ajanaku, STAN*** MB 6-3 Jr. Tulsa, Okla.
Alexis Austin, COLO OH 6-2 Jr. Houston, Texas
Martenne Bettendorf, ORE OH 6-0 Jr. Portland, Ore.
Liz Brenner, ORE *** OH 6-1 Sr. Portland, Ore.
Samantha Bricio, USC *** OH 6-2 Jr. Guadalajara, Mexico
Madi Bugg, STAN S 6-0 Jr. Apex, N.C.
Jordan Burgess, STAN *** OH 6-1 Jr. Fort Meyers, Fla.
Shelby Dalton, UTAH OPP 6-1 Sr. Moab, Utah
Macey Gardner, ASU *** OH 6-0 Jr. Gilbert, Ariz.
Madi Kingdon, ARIZ ** OH 6-1 Sr. Phoenix, Ariz.
Karsta Lowe, UCLA ** OH 6-4 Sr. Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.
Merete Lutz, STAN MB 6-8 RFr. Houston, Texas
Mary-Kate Marshall, OSU OH 6-1 Fr. Coppell, Texas
Kaleigh Nelson, WASH ** OH 6-0 Sr. Salem, Ore.
Penina Snuka, ARIZ S 5-6 So. Gilbert, Ariz.
Lianna Sybeldon, WASH MB 6-1 Jr. Folsom, Calif.
Taylor Simpson, COLO OH 6-3 Sr. Colorado Springs, Colo.
Krista Vansant, WASH *** OH 6-2 Sr. Redlands, Calif.

Honorable Mention: Taylor Arizobal, ARIZ; Bailey Bateman, UTAH; Amanda Benson, ORE; Morgan Boukather, STAN; Reily Buechler, UCLA; Julie Consani, UCLA; Taylor Formico, UCLA; Kyle Gilbert, STAN; Christina Higgins, CAL; Brittany Howard, STAN; Kacey Nady, ORE; Arica Nassar, OSU; Ebony Nwanebu, USC; Alicia Ogoms, USC; Lillian Schonewise, CAL; Cassie Strickland, WASH; Lara Vukasovic, CAL; Melanie Wade, WASH.

2014 PAC-12 ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM

PLAYER, TEAM POS. HT. HOMETOWN
Adora Anae, UTAH OH 6-1 Laie, Hawaii
Reily Buechler, UCLA OH 6-1 Del Mar, Calif.
Crissy Jones, WASH OH/MB 6-2 Los Alamitos, Calif.
Merete Lutz, STAN MB 6-8 Houston, Texas
Mary-Kate Marshall, OSU OH 6-1 Coppell, Texas
Tia Scambray, WASH OH 6-0 Dana Point, Calif.
Frankie Shebby, ORE OH 6-0 La Mirada, Calif.

Honorable Mention: Halle Harker, ASU; McKenzie Jacobsen, ARIZ; Anna Pfefferle, COLO; Maggie Scott, ORE; Gabby Simpson, COLO; Olga Strantzali, UCLA; Bailey Tanner, WASH.