Dec. 19, 2007

American University volleyball player Rubena Sukaj has been named an American Volleyball Coaches Association All-America Honorable Mention.

Sukaj led the '07 Eagles to their seventh-consecutive Patriot League Championship and seventh-straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Along the way she broke the Patriot League record for kills in a season with 637 and led the conference for the second year in a row in both kills per game (5.49) and aces per game (0.66). Sukaj's kills total (637), kills per game average (5.49) and attack attempts (1,446) each placed her second in AU's single-season record book. The junior also notched 11 double-doubles on the year and set new single-match career-highs with 32 kills, 17 digs, 10 aces and six total blocks.

This marks Sukaj's second-consecutive AVCA All-America Honorable Mention nod and is the final addition to a long list of individual awards for the junior this season. Earlier in the year Sukaj was named to the AVCA All-Northeast Region Team, was named the Patriot League Player of the Year - her second Patriot League Player of the Year award in as many years -, First Team All-Patriot League and earned five awards as the Patriot League Baden Player of the Week. Sukaj was also named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District II First Team, was the Sept. 27 ECAC Div. I Player of the Week and the Aug. 27 AU Student-Athlete of the Week presented by GEICO.