Nov. 18, 2008
Center Valley, Pa.-- Army and American topped the Patriot League regular season standings, and each was rewarded when the 2008 All-Patriot League volleyball team was announced on Tuesday afternoon. Army, which finished 13-1 in Patriot League play, placed a League-high five student athletes on the All-League team. American, which will be the top seed in the upcoming Patriot League Tournament, led all teams with three First-Team selections. Colgate had three members of the All-League team, including one First-Team honoree. Bucknell had two All-League selections, while Navy had one.
American senior Rubena Sukaj, the two-time Patriot League Player of the Year, headlines the All-Patriot League team. It was the fourth consecutive season that Sukaj has been First-Team All-Patriot League selection. Sukaj leads the Patriot League with 463 kills and ranks 17th in the nation with 4.23 kills per set. She has nine double-doubles this season, which ranks her second in the Patriot League. A pair of Sukaj's teammates joined her as First-Team All-Patriot League honorees. Senior setter Christina Nash was named to the All-Patriot League team for the third time in her career. It was the first time that Nash had been named First-Team All-Patriot League. She currently leads the Patriot League with 1,076 assists. She also has 35 aces, 109 kills, 174 digs and 71 blocks. Ivana Cebakova rounds out American's selections. The junior leads the nation with 0.67 service aces per set. She also ranks fourth in the Patriot League with 3.42 digs per set. It is the second time in Cebakova's career that she has been named All-League and the first time she has received First-Team honors.
Army placed a League-high five players on the All-Patriot League team, including two on the first team. Junior setter Maureen Bannon led the Patriot League with 10.87 assists per set. She had 459 assists against League competition alone. She also contributed 44 service aces and 189 digs. Bannon has now been named All-Patriot League in three consecutive seasons. She is joined on the First-Team by teammate Jamie Clark. Like Bannon, Clark has been named to the All-Patriot League in three consecutive seasons. Clark, a senior middle blocker, leads the Patriot League with 0.94 blocks per set. She also ranks eighth in the Patriot League in kills with 3.01 per set. Earning Second-Team All-Patriot League recognition was a trio of Army seniors. Rachael Breinling earned her second All-Patriot League nod after playing in 94 of Army's 95 sets this season. She racked up 257 kills and 56 blocks. Elizabeth Lazzari earned All-Patriot League honors for the second time in her career after finishing among the top 10 in the Patriot League in digs and hitting percentage. The two-year co-captain compiled a team-high eight double-doubles this season. Outside hitter Briana Stremick rounds out Army's selections. She was among the top 10 in the Patriot League in hitting percentage, kills and blocks. Her selection marked the second time in her career that Stremick was named to the All-Patriot League team, and the first since her freshman season in 2005.
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Colgate placed three student-athletes on the All-Patriot League team, including two First-Team selections. Sophomore middle blocker Casey Ritt, the 2007 Patriot League Rookie of the Year, earned her second All-Patriot League nod after earning Second-Team honors a year ago. Ritt was named First-Team All-Patriot League in 2008 after finishing with 222 kills and finishing sixth in the Patriot League with a .291 hitting percentage. Ritt recorded a .349 hitting percentage against League foes. Her teammate, senior Katrina Zawojski, joined Ritt as a First-Team All-Patriot League honoree. Zawojski led the Raiders and finished second in the Patriot League with 361 kills. Zawojski has been named to the All-Patriot League team four times. It is the third consecutive season that she has been honored with First-Team All-Patriot League accolades. Senior libero Jackie Adlam rounded out the Colgate selections. A Second-Team All-Patriot League selection, Adlam led the League with 3.87 digs per set. She has now been named to the All-Patriot League team in four consecutive seasons.
A pair of Bucknell players was honored with Second-Team All-Patriot League recognition. Senior setter Shannon Pitsch earned First-Team All-Patriot League honors in a season in which she finished with 749 assists. She also provided 134 digs and 26 service aces. Sophomore outside hitter Kaitlin Segal joined Pitsch as a First-Team All-Patriot League honoree after accounted for 334 kills and 26 blocks. Her 3.31 kills per set ranked third in the Patriot League.
Completing the All-Patriot League team was Navy senior middle blocker Alexa Gibbs. She led Navy and finished fourth in the Patriot League with 338 kills.
The 2008 Patriot League Major Awards will be announced on Thursday, Nov. 20 at the Patriot League Tournament banquet. The major awards include Patriot League Player, Defensive Player, Setter, Rookie and Coach of the Year.
All-Patriot League
First Team
Ivana Cebakova, Jr., DS, American
Christina Nash, Sr., S, American
Rubena Sukaj, Sr., OH, American
Maureen Bannon, Jr., S, Army
Jamie Clark, Sr., MB, Army
Casey Ritt, So., MB, Colgate
Katrina Zawojski, Sr., RS, Colgate
Second Team
Rachael Breinling, Sr., MB, Army
Elizabeth Lazzari, Sr., OH, Army
Briana Stremick, Sr., OH, Army
Shannon Pitsch, Sr., S, Bucknell
Kaitlin Segal, So., OH, Bucknell
Jackie Adlam, Sr., L, Colgate
Alexa Gibbs, Sr., MB, Navy
