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SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — The 2004 season may have come to an abrupt close with a 3-0 defeat at the University of La Verne on Saturday night, but the Wittenberg volleyball team did receive good news over the weekend as four players were honored by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) with All-America honors.
Headlining the list of All-Americans in 2004 is senior setter Sarah Yuskewich (Columbus, Ohio/Watterson), who became Wittenberg's first three-time first-team All-America honoree. The team and conference leader in assists and assists per game, Yuskewich was earlier named North Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Year and first-team All-Great Lakes Region for a third straight year. The NCAA Division III record-holder for assists in a season with 2,125 in 2002, Yuskewich, who also holds the school record for career blocks, concluded her career ranked in the top five nationally for career assists and assists per game after shattering both the Wittenberg and NCAC marks. Her 2004 total of 1,547 assists took her career number to 6,151.
Senior libero Emilie Schmid (Canton, Ohio/Massillon Jackson) earned second-team All-America honors, the highest accolade she has received in her Wittenberg career. An honorable mention choice in 2003, Schmid wound up as the school and conference record-holder for digs in a season and a career after recording 1,056 during the 2004 campaign. Schmid is the only player to ever earn the NCAC Libero of the Year award in its two years of existence, and she wrapped things up with 2,690 career digs, good for fourth all-time in NCAA Division III history, based on records prior to the 2004 season.
Senior outside hitter Monica McDonald (Newark, Ohio/Catholic) wrapped up her Wittenberg career with third-team All-America honors, a tribute to both her outstanding all-around play and her tenacity coming back from a knee injury that sidelined her for the entire 2003 season. A 2002 second-team All-American, McDonald finished with a team-best 376 kills in 2004, the third time in her four seasons in the Red & White that McDonald had topped the Tigers offensively. She finished her career with 1,626 kills, good for fifth on the Wittenberg list and sixth on the NCAC list. Her career attack percentage also ranks among the leaders in Wittenberg and NCAC history.
Senior middle hitter Kristin Fox (Galion, Ohio/Galion) put an exclamation point on her career with honorable mention All-America honors for the second straight year. Also a two-time All-NCAC and All-Great Lakes Region honoree, Fox came on strong in her final two years in the Red & White to rank among the team leaders in kills and attack percentage. After moving to outside hitter in 2003 due to injuries to other players, Fox moved back to her natural position of middle hitter in 2004 and was a force there as well.
"I'm happy these seniors have been nationally recognized for their outstanding commitment and unsurpassed work ethic," said Head Coach Paco Labrador. "I'm proud of Sarah for maintaining her level of excellence, and for making those around her better players. I believe that Emilie is the best libero in the nation, and she typifies what a libero brings to an elite-level volleyball team.
"I've never coached a player with a better work ethic than Monica, and I knew after her injury in 2003 that she would return to the court in 2004 as the dominant player she was prior to it. And Kristin is an outstanding all-around player who has made tremendous contributions to this program. All will be missed in 2005."
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Paco Labrador
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Rounding out the postseason awards available to date, Labrador was honored as Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year. In his second season at the helm, Labrador has continued to take the Tigers to new heights with a school-record 35 wins in 2004 after leading an injury-riddled squad to the regional championship match in 2003. A 1995 graduate of Hiram College, Labrador has a sparkling two-year record of 63-10, including marks of 16-0 in the NCAC regular season, 5-0 in the NCAC Tournament and 3-2 in the NCAA Division III Tournament. Wittenberg finished the 2004 regular season ranked No. 2 in the nation after checking in at No. 10 at the end of the 2003 campaign.
"The combination of Paco's knowledge of the game, the way he interacts with his players and the leadership of the five seniors in 2004 really allowed our team to put together the best season Wittenberg has ever seen," said Schmid, one of three captains on the 2004 squad. "While it didn't end the way we wanted, it remains a very special season. Even though we're graduating a strong senior class, the foundation has been laid for the Wittenberg program to continue to excel in the future."
Wittenberg rounded out 2004 with a 35-3 overall record, including a perfect 16-0 home record. The Tigers have won eight straight NCAC regular season and tournament championships and have made nine straight trips to the NCAA Division III Tournament and 10 in school history. They haven't lost in conference regular season play since October 1997 and they haven't tasted defeat in the conference tournament since November 1996. Wittenberg's all-time record in national tournament action is now 9-10 overall, with a pair of national quarterfinal appearances (2002 and 2004).
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