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Juniata College
Eagles Earn All-ECAC Defensive Specialist of the Year, Coach of the Year, Three All-ECAC Team honors
December 12, 2023

Eagles Earn All-ECAC Defensive Specialist of the Year, Coach of the Year, Three All-ECAC Team honors

DANBURY, Conn.- The Juniata women's volleyball team earned several Division III Women's Volleyball All-ECAC awards, including Defensive Specialist of the Year, Coach of the Year, two First Team selections, and one Second Team selection. 

Kiona Sky Rousset-Hernandez earned Defensive Specialist of the Year honors, the program's fifth All-ECAC Player of the and head coach Heather Pavlik earned her fifth All-ECAC Coach of the Year Award. Rousset-Hernandez was joined by Mackenzie Coley on the first team, while Olivia Foley was placed on the second team.  

Rousset-Hernandez completes accolades season with her first Defensive Player of the Year award and All-ECAC recognition. Prior to this, Rousset-Hernandez was named an AVCA All-America Second Team for the second consecutive season. In January, she became a three-time AVCA All-Region Player, a two-time Landmark Conference Specialist of the Year, and a three-time All-Landmark Conference player. Rousset-Hernandez has been an effective server and passer for Juniata this season, sitting fourth in the Landmark Conference for aces per set (0.57) and sixth in the conference for digs per set (4.98). Defensively, she contributed to a back row that helped maintain the fourth-lowest opponent-hitting percentage in DII (.078). In 2023, she totaled 473 digs, 54 aces, and 104 assists this season. Her current career digs tally of 1652 puts her seventh in program history, having surpassed Carli Dale '05 in the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 match against Stevens.   

Pavlik adds a fifth-career ECAC Coach of the Year award following the program's undefeated DIII Women's Volleyball National Championship season. She earned her third AVCA Division III Women's Volleyball Regional Coach of the Year Award in November, her second consecutive time taking the honor. she also secured her seventh Landmark Conference Coaching Staff of the Year award as a head coach. This fall, the program earned its fourth national championship, 42nd consecutive conference championship, and 16th consecutive Landmark Conference Championship, ending 2023 undefeated through 35 matches. For Pavlik, it was her second national championship and 13th consecutive conference championship. The team led the country in hitting percentage (.295) and aces per set (3.55), was second in assists per set (13.07), and maintained the fourth-lowest opponent hitting percentage (.078). 

Coley placed on the All-ECAC First Team for the second consecutive season after earning Player of the Year honors in 2022. In November, she placed on the AVCA's All-America First Team for the second consecutive season. She also placed on the AVCA All-Region Team for the second time in her career, was named Landmark Conference Player of the Year, and was a First-Team All-Conference Player for the second consecutive season. It's the third straight season that she has landed on an all-conference team. Coley ended the season 11th in hitting percentage in DIII. Within the Landmark Conference, she led in hitting percentage, was second in kills per set (3.67), and fourth in blocks per set (0.71). She placed on the All-Tournament Team for the NCAA Tournament Huntingdon Regional after posting a .338 hitting percentage, 29 kills, six block assists, two solo blocks, and an ace across the three rounds. She earned Landmark Conference Athlete of the Week honors twice (Sept. 11, Nov. 6). Coley also had a record-setting individual match performance this fall, posting a .731 hitting percentage with 21 kills against Lynchburg (Oct. 28). It's the fifth-best hitting percentage in program history (minimum 20 attempts), while it's the tenth-best since rally scoring was introduced in 2001 (minimum 15 attempts).  

Foley placed on the All-ECAC Second Team after being named AVCA DIII Co-Player of the Year. She was also named to the AVCA All-America First Team after two years on the Second Team. She earned AVCA All-Region honors for the third time in her career, and this season marked her first time as an AVCA Regional Player of the Year. She also landed on the Landmark All-Conference First Team for the third straight season. She was the Tournament MVP for both the NCAA Tournament (Elite Eight onward) in Claremont, Calif. And the Huntingdon, Pa. Regional of the NCAA Tournament. Foley also earned Landmark Athlete of the Week honors once this season (Oct. 30). She ended the season first in DIII in assists per set (11.18), while she guided the Juniata offense to the best-hitting percentage in the country (.295). In addition to her 1074 assists this season, she had 34 aces and 276 digs. Her 3198 assists currently put her tenth in program history in just three seasons as the program's primary setter.