Brown, Matiasovska and Dukule Win BIG EAST Honors

Nov. 15, 2007

Three University of Louisville volleyball players earned All-Conference Honors with Lecia Brown and Svetlana Dukule being named to the First Team All-BIG EAST Team and Jana Matiasovska picking up Second Team All-BIG EAST kudos.

St. John's volleyball players were awarded major postseason honors by the conference Thursday evening at the annual awards banquet held at the Hilton Milwaukee City Center. Red Storm senior Hui Ping Huang was selected as the BIG EAST Player of the Year while junior teammate Kathleen "Lena" Yee was named BIG EAST Libero of the Year. Additionally, Cincinnati freshman Stephanie Niemer garnered BIG EAST Freshman of the Year honors and first year Villanova coach Josh Steinbach was named BIG EAST Coach of the Year.

The banquet, held in conjunction with the BIG EAST Volleyball Championship, also honored 24 All-BIG EAST selections. This year's championship is hosted by Marquette University at the Al McGuire Center in Milwaukee, Wis. All quarterfinal and semifinal matches will be streamed online at www.BIGEAST.tv. The Championship match will air live on ESPNU on Nov. 18 at 3:00 p.m. CT.

Huang, the 2007 Preseason BIG EAST Co-Player of the Year, led the No. 20 Red Storm (28-3 overall, 13-1 BIG EAST) to their second regular-season conference championship with consistent play and strong hitting. The Shanghai, China, native ended the season first in the league in hitting percentage (.436) and third in kills per game (4.48), numbers that rank her fifth and 58th nationally, respectively. Huang was named BIG EAST Player of the Week Oct. 22 and to the conference's honor roll Aug. 27, Oct. 15 and Nov. 12.

This year marks the second consecutive season Yee was named BIG EAST Libero of the Year. The Honolulu, Hawaii, native ranks fifth in the league and first on her team in digs per game (4.60). Against conference opponents, Yee averaged 4.76 digs per game. She also has the Red Storm's second-best hitting percentage (.400).

Niemer wins the award after a tremendous rookie season in which she helped the Bearcats to an 18-10 overall record and a 9-5 finish in the BIG EAST. The Erlanger, Ky., native ended the year second in the league in aces per game (0.51) and second on her squad in kills per game (3.57). Niemer was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week Sept. 24 and earned conference honor roll recognition Oct. 22.

Steinbach led the Wildcats to a 17-11 overall record and a 9-5 conference finish in his debut season. Villanova was picked to finish 10th in the 2007 BIG EAST preseason poll, but enters this weekend's championship as the No. 3 seed. It is the squad's first top-four seeding since the 2003 season. VU's BIG EAST regular-season third-place finish is the team's best since its second-place finish in 1997. Steinbach's guidance also resulted in eight five-game wins for the Wildcats.

Twenty-one All-BIG EAST selections will be participating in the BIG EAST Volleyball Championship quarterfinals on Nov. 16. Huang was selected to the conference's first team while Lee and Niemer made the second team.

BIG EAST Player of the Year
Hui Ping Huang (St. John's)
BIG EAST Libero of the YearKathleen "Lena" Yee
BIG EAST Freshman of the YearStephanie Niemer Cincinnati
BIG EAST Coach of the Year
Josh Steinbach VillanovaAll-BIG EAST First TeamDiana Andreyko  (Pitt)Lecia Brown (Louisville)Latoya Blunt (St. John's)Sad&eacute; Chambers (UConn)Alona Cherkez (Villanova)Svetlana Dukule (Louisville)Marcela Gurgel (USF)Hui Ping Huang (St. John's)Wioleta Leszczynska (St. John's)Jessie Nevitt (Cincinnati)Kacy Sellers (Villanova)Kim Todd (Marquette)
All-BIG EAST Second TeamCheryl Cobbina (Syracuse)Bridget Denson-Dorman (Connecticut)Meagan Dooley (Pittsburgh)Kristina Fabris (USF)Joscie Kaup (Syracuse)Jana Matiasovska (Louisville)Tricia Meyers (Seton Hall)Stephanie Niemer (Cincinnati)Serinity Phillips (Notre Dame)Adrianna Stasiuk (Notre Dame)Justine Stremick (Notre Dame)Kathleen "Lena" Yee (St. John's)

University of Louisville Athletics

Players Mentioned

Lecia Brown

Lecia Brown

Svetlana Dukule

Svetlana Dukule

Jana Matiasovska

Jana Matiasovska

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