GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Campbellsville University women's volleyball team had five members selected to the NCCAA All Mid-East Region team along with head coach
Eric Snyder named the region's Coach of the Year, NCCAA officials announced on Monday.
The five student-athletes named to the All-Region teams were seniors
Jaimie Thompson and
Yelyzaveta Sharkova, sophomores
Paige Merrick and
Sonia Flendrich, and freshman
Sophie Ball. Thompson, Flendrich, and Ball earned First Team honors with Merrick and Sharkova selected to the Second Team.
In Snyder's second season in charge of the volleyball programs, he led the Lady Tigers to a 17-18 overall record to finish out the season. The Lady Tigers had significant roster turnover from year one to year two under Snyder with 13 student-athletes new to the roster for the 2019 season.
Thompson, a senior from Owensboro, Ky., ranked eighth in the NAIA in total digs on the season (687) and 14th in digs per set (5.77) as she appeared in 32 of the team's 33 regular season matches. Those numbers also lead the Mid-South Conference in those categories a full 36 digs ahead and about seven digs per set ahead of the next-highest in the MSC.
Her play this season also helped earn her the Mid-South Conference Libero of the Year honor for the first time in her career.
Flendrich's team-high 304 kills carried her to her selection as she also finished with a .130 hitting percentage on the season. That kills total finished her at 10th in the MSC through the regular season as she was also strong on the defensive game with nine double-doubles on the season.
In her freshman season, Ball finished third on the Lady Tigers in kills on the season with a total of 197 in 35 matches and 127 sets played. Her .171 hitting percentage finished second among the CU outside hitters as she added 28 blocks, and 155 digs on the season.
Merrick ranked 30th in the NAIA in total assists (1062) and 41st in total aces (49) on the season with her conference ranks finishing the regular season at second for assists and in a tie for first in total aces. Merrick also have 17 double-doubles on the season combining her assist number with her digs total as Merrick also finished with the second-most digs for the Lady Tigers this season at 326.
Sharkova's senior season saw a positional change from her 2018 season as a middle blocker to her more natural position as an outside hitter. She finished the 2019 season with 125 kills on 393 attacks for a .137 hitting percentage while adding 31 blocks and 50 digs. She especially had a strong finish to the season as one of the top attackers in the final four matches for the Lady Tigers with 33 kills over 13 sets including 10 kills against Lindsey Wilson in the MSC Tournament.
