ERIE, Pa. - Sophomore
Hannah Kren (Waukesha, Wisc. / Wisconsin Lutheran) and junior
Lynne Hibbard (West Barnstable, Mass. / Barnstable) of the Gannon women's volleyball team were each named to the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division First Team on Thursday afternoon, as announced by the conference office. Seniors
Megan Wendel (Aurora, Ohio / Kenston) and
Taryn Graham (Huron, Ohio / Huron) landed on the PSAC Second Team.
Securing four all-conference selections this season, the Lady Knights tied their previous mark for most PSAC honorees set in the 2009 season.
Registering 21 double-doubles this season, Kren leads the Lady Knights in kills per set (3.74) and ranks second in digs per set (3.90). She also sits atop the conference in kills per set. For the first time in her career, the 2013 PSAC Western Division Rookie of the Year earned a spot on the first team after receiving a spot on the second team last season.
Hibbard secured her first all-conference honor of her career, averaging 2.42 kills and attacking at a team-best clip of .315. She ranks fourth among the PSAC leaders in hitting percentage. The junior is also producing 0.81 blocks and 0.26 digs per set. She swept the PSAC Western Division Athlete of the Week and the Corvias Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Co-Player of the Week for the week of Oct. 13.
Beyond the court, Hibbard recently nabbed her first career Academic All-District honor with a 3.91 cumulative grade point average as a Physical Therapy major. The junior middle blocker has been named a PSAC Scholar-Athlete and received the NCAA Division II Athletics Directors Association (ADA) Academic Achievement Award every year during her collegiate career.
For the third consecutive season, Wendel was selected to the All-PSAC Western Division Second Team. Generating 13 double-doubles on the season, she is currently averaging 11.30 assists and 2.43 digs per set. The senior has dished out at least 40 or more assists in 15 matches this season.
Wendel was named the PSAC Western Division Athlete of the Week and the Corvias ECAC Co-Player of the Week for the week of Oct. 6, when she became the program's all-time career assists leader with her current total set at 4,196. She established a new career-high with 70 assists against Clarion Nov. 1, which marks the highest total by a Lady Knight since 2002.
Graham picked up her first all-conference selection, landing a spot on the second team. Leading the team in digs per set (5.32), she ranks sixth in the PSAC. The senior is currently 16 digs away from breaking her all-time single-season digs record of 580. Earlier this season in a 3-1 win over Wayne State at the Tony Banner Memorial Tournament Sept. 5, she became the program's all-time digs leader with her current total equaling 1,993.
Gannon made its sixth consecutive appearance at the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Tournament. Entering the conference tournament, the Lady Knights earned the No. 3 seed in the Western Division. In the PSAC quarterfinals Nov. 11, the Lady Knights fell to host and No. 2 seed Seton Hill in a five-set marathon.
Head coach
Matt Darling's squad has competed in the PSAC and NCAA Tournaments during each of the last five seasons.
