BELLINGER NAMED ALL-AMERICAN BY DAKTRONICS, AVCA
Following a 35-6 season that saw the University of North
Alabama volleyball team advance to the NCAA Division II national
championship match, the Lions had three senior players receive All-
America recognition from the American Volleyball Coaches Association
(AVCA). Setter Laura Bellinger received first-team honors from the
AVCA, while opposite Megan Stout was a third-team selection and
libero Ashley Hill received an honorable mention.
Bellinger receives All-American status for the second straight year.
The Portage, Mich., native was named first team All-America by the
AVCA and second team by Daktronics.
Bellinger, who surpassed the 5,000 mark for career assists during
the Lions’ 2006 NCAA Division II tournament run, paced a UNA
offensive attack that broke 12 school records at the single match,
single season and career levels. She finished the season with
a 13.04 assist-per-game average and was named the player of the year
in the Gulf South Conference and the South Central Region. She wraps
up a three-year career at UNA with the school record for most
assists in a match (76, twice in 2005) and assists per game (14.36
in 2005). Her career total of 5,119 assists is second all-time
in the Lion record books.
Last year, she received the same All-America honors in reverse
order, getting second-team recognition from the AVCA and a
first-team from Daktronics.
Stout earns her first All-America selection after an impressive
senior season. The Montgomery, Ala., native averaged 3.16 kills per
game and was second on the team in assists with 128 on the year. She
was also a second team All-GSC selection and got an AVCA first team
All-South Central Region nod.
Hill becomes the third UNA volleyball player to receive an
All-America honorable mention from the AVCA. The senior from
Bellevue, Ohio, is a two-time GSC East Division Defensive Player of
the Week and averaged 5.44 digs per game this season, breaking a
school record in the process. She was able to set three other school
records for the Lions in 2006, including most digs in a match (43
versus Truman State on Nov. 10), most digs in a season (598) and
highest career digs-per-game average (4.92). |
