http://www.miac-online.org/news/2011/11/7/WVBALL_1107110156.aspx

MIAC Volleyball Hitter-of-the-Week

Jenna Green, Concordia
Dilworth, Minn. / Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton

Concordia added the 2011 MIAC Volleyball Playoff championship to its incredible season last week by defeating Saint Benedict and St. Thomas in the semifinals and championship, respectively. Offensively, the top-seeded Cobbers were led by star hitter Jenna Green (Dilworth, Minn./Dilworth-Gyndon-Felton) in both victories. Green racked up 35 kills with a .243 hitting percentage to go along with 36 digs and two service aces over the two wins, and Green was named to the six-player All-Tournament Team for her outstanding performance. Also, Green has been named the MIAC Volleyball Hitter-of-the-Week for the third time this season and the fifth time in her career.

Green's big week started with 15 kills, 14 digs and an ace with a .342 hitting percentage in a dominant 3-0 sweep of fourth-seeded Saint Benedict. She followed with an even bigger performance - 20 kills, 22 digs and an ace - to lead the Cobbers back from a 2-1 deficit to beat second-seeded St. Thomas 3-2 in Saturday's championship match in Moorhead. Green already holds Concordia's all-time record for digs, and earlier this year she recorded her 1,000th career kill. With just seven more kills, she'll become the first player in Cobber history to have 400 kills and 400 digs in the same season. Green is tied for the MIAC lead with 4.16 kills per set and her 4.43 digs per set is the sixth-best average in the league.

With the MIAC Playoff victories, the Cobbers improved to 25-3 overall after finishing with a 10-1 conference mark. Thanks to its outstanding regular season and postseason MIAC title, the NCAA announced Monday that Concordia will host an eight-team regional this weekend in the 2011 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Tournament. The host Cobbers open with a first-round match Friday against UW-Stevens Point at 8 p.m. The regional semifinals will be held Saturday, with the regional final taking place Sunday at 4 p.m. All seven matches will be held at Concordia's Memorial Auditorium, and the other six teams in the regional are: St. Thomas, Bethel, Saint Benedict, St. Scholastica, Northwestern and UW-Eau Claire.

MIAC Volleyball Setter/Libero-of-the-Week

Amy Sykora, Concordia
Rapid City, S.D. / Stevens

Concordia's offense was running on all cylinders last week as the top-seeded Cobbers defeated No. 4 Saint Benedict and No. 2 St. Thomas to win the 2011 MIAC Volleyball Playoff championship, with added to their share of the regular-season title. A big reason for Concordia's offensive success was the postseason play of setter Amy Sykora (Rapid City, S.D./Stevens), who dished out 85 assists and racked up 22 digs in the two victories. For her performance, Sykora has been named the MIAC Volleyball Setter/Libero-of-the-Week.

Sykora started the week with a 33-assist, six-dig, three-kill performance in a 3-0 sweep of the fourth-seeded Blazers. Sykora's sets helped Concordia hit at a .320 clip as a team, while Saint Ben's hitting percentage was just .062. She was equally good in Saturday's comeback win over the second-seeded Tommies, as the Cobbers won the final two sets to score a 3-2 victory in the title match. Sykora contributed 55 assists, 16 digs and an ace in the victory as her team out-hit St. Thomas, .215 to .171. This season, Sykora has 952 assists and her average of 9.92 assists per set ranks third in the conference. She also ranks ninth in the MIAC with an average of 0.36 service aces per set. With just 13 more assists, Sykora will move into second place on Concordia's all-time assist leader board.

With the MIAC Playoff victories, the Cobbers improved to 25-3 overall after finishing with a 10-1 conference mark. Thanks to its outstanding regular season and postseason MIAC title, the NCAA announced Monday that Concordia will host an eight-team regional this weekend in the 2011 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Tournament. The host Cobbers open with a first-round match Friday against UW-Stevens Point at 8 p.m. The regional semifinals will be held Saturday, with the regional final taking place Sunday at 4 p.m. All seven matches will be held at Concordia's Memorial Auditorium, and the other six teams in the regional are: St. Thomas, Bethel, Saint Benedict, St. Scholastica, Northwestern and UW-Eau Claire.

Courtesy of MIAC