Springfield, Ohio – For the 12th time in school history, a Wittenberg volleyball player has earned Sports Imports/Division III National Player of the Week from the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA). The latest honoree is junior right-side hitter Kara Seidenstricker (London, Ohio/Jonathan Alder), who earned the award on Sept. 16 after leading the Tigers to a 3-1 record in the Wittenberg Fall Classic. 

Seidenstricker put together a tremendous weekend for the Tigers, who were hosting a tournament that included five of the top 10 teams in the most recent AVCA poll. She started off by contributing nine kills, seven digs and a .381 attack percentage in a 3-0 victory over No. 1 Calvin, the defending national champion. Over the Tigers’ next three matches – 3-1 victories over Heidelberg and Ohio Northern and a 3-2 loss to No. 8 Juniata – Seidenstricker lifted her game, recording double-doubles for kills and digs to finish with an average of 4.0 kills and 3.0 digs per set while hitting .356. 

Ranked ninth nationally, Wittenberg is off to a 7-3 start to the 2014 season. Five of the Tigers’ first 10 opponents have been ranked nationally. 

Wittenberg began the 2014 campaign in its customary position of North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) favorite. The Tigers have lost just two NCAC regular season matches since 1998 and have won 18 of the last 19 NCAC regular season and tournament titles. 

Seidenstricker has led the Tigers in kills in each of her first two collegiate seasons, and she has picked up right where she left off in 2013 with a strong start to the new season. She has piled up a team-best 130 kills on a .321 attack percentage to go along with team-leading 23 service aces, 20 blocks and 129 digs, which ranks second on the team. 

Seidenstricker is the first Wittenberg player to claim Sports Imports/AVCA Division III Player of the Week honors since Christina Gilene, class of 2013, was recognized on Sept. 11, 2012.

Written By: Ryan Maurer