Five John Brown University volleyball players earned All-Sooner Athletic Conference honors on Friday night, headlined by Jenna Lowery winning Freshman of the Year, the conference offices announced.
Junior Jessica Meyer, the reigning SAC Hitter of the Year, garnered her second-straight first team selection, joined by Lowery on the top list. Juniors Megan Beck, Lindsey Davis and Elizabeth Williams all earned honorable mention accolades as the Golden Eagles finished the season 16-15 and hosted its fourth-consecutive SAC tournament quarterfinals matchup inside Bill George Arena.
It was their first-career appearances on the All-SAC lists for Beck, Davis and Williams.
"I'm very proud of the five members of our team who were recognized by the SAC coaches for their respective bodies of work this season," head coach Ken Carver said. "To have five of our players honored for their efforts speaks to the depth of talent we had on this year's team. I'm proud of everyone's efforts this year as we faced a lot of lineup challenges week-to-week due to rash of injuries we dealt with on a regular basis -- which impacted the lineup we were able to put out on the court on any given night. These players, and our team as a whole, demonstrated a lot of resiliency and mental toughness to just roll up their sleeves, tune out the potential negative thoughts associated with an ever-changing lineup, and work hard to compete night in and out and have a successful season individually and collectively this year.
"The exciting thing is that we will have the opportunity to have all five back next season with another off-season to train and prepare. I expect they'll come back for an even better performance next season."
Lowery capped off a strong rookie season by finishing as one of the top back-row players in the Sooner Athletic Conference. The Paris native led the Golden Eagles with 518 regular-season digs, averaging 5.03 digs per set. She anchored the John Brown serve-receive offense and passed more than 675 serve-receive attempts at a 93.5 percent efficiency, making life easier for setters Elizabeth Williams and Carrie Ciesla. Lowery was also a threat from the service line, launching 34. In Sooner Athletic Conference play, Lowery paced the league in total digs and finished second in digs per set. She also ended the year with the sixth-most aces.
"This is a program-first during my tenure," Carver added. "Jenna has set the bar high with her outstanding freshman campaign and, while she had a great first year with our program, there's still more Jenna is capable of doing and improving on, so I cannot wait to see how much she will improve during the offseason."
Earning her third end-of-season conference accolades in her career, Meyer continued to shoulder the majority of the Golden Eagle front-line attack. She paced John Brown in total kills (229), kills per set (2.29) and finished second in attack percentage (.248). The Windsor, Colo., native also was JBU's strongest defensive net presence, racking up 15 solo blocks and 71 block-assists, both best on the squad. Her numbers landed her fourth in the league in attack percentage and second-best in just SAC play. Her 86 total rejections trailed just one player in the league. Meyer hit over .350 in nine matches this season and posted seven double-digit termination performances.
"Our conference opponents began really keying in on Jessica and trying to limit her offensive effectiveness, given her reputation and past performances," admitted Carver. "To Jessica's credit, she worked a lot with our setters to find her shot and be effective for us in spite of those challenges she was facing night in and night out. With the consistency she has shown during her first three years as a player, Jessica has an opportunity ahead of her to achieve something very special during her senior campaign -- passing the 1,000 kill, 400 block mark for her career -- which would put her up there with some of the program's all-time best players."
Davis posted a career season in 2018, including leading the Golden Eagles in attack percentage (.256) and finished second with 74 total blocks. The Plano, Texas, product was also tasked with serving this season, where she served up eight aces and served at a .914 rate. Next season, she'll have the chance to surpass the 500-kill, 200-block plateau.
Beck filled in admirably in multiple positions, including opposite side hitter and setter, over the course of the year, partially due to mounting injuries. The native of Frisco, Texas, posted a career year, hitting at a .208 rate - the third-most efficient attacker on the team. Beck also got into the defensive act, throwing up 10 solo blocks and 42 block-assists, both marks finishing third for John Brown.
Williams, while splitting duties with Cielsa, still turned in a career-best season. The Springdale native earned 4.83 assists per set, 1.93 digs per set and launched a team-leading 40 service aces from the line. Her efforts placed her in the SAC's top 10 in total assists (497), assists per set and aces. Earlier this season, Williams crossed the 1,000 career assists mark, despite playing the majority of her career in a two-setter system.
Sports on 11/14/2018