AVCA ALL-REGION RELEASE
LEXINGTON, Ky. - The American Coaches Volleyball Association (AVCA) released it's list of NCAA Division III All-Region teams on Thursday, and junior Emma Mancini (Lynnfield, Mass.) and sophomore Zoey Gifford (Natick, Mass.) were recognized for their accomplishments in the 2017 season. Mancini was named to the AVCA All-New England Region team, while Gifford received Honorable Mention honors.
For Mancini, she was one of two Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) student-athletes to make the All-Region team as she led the Endicott women's volleyball team to its second title in as many seasons. The outside has re-written the Endicott record books in 2017, setting program records for kills with 438 and a single-match record for kills with 29 in the team's 3-2 win over Tufts. Mancini also produced a 28 kill effort in the team's 3-1 win over Coast Guard which was the school record for kills in a four set match. For the season, Mancini leads the Gulls in kills, kills/set (4.13), hitting percentage (.267), points (494), and points/set (4.7). This is the first AVCA All-New England Region honor of Mancini's career.
As a sophomore, Gifford grabbed control of the team's primary setting responsibilities early in the season and never looked back, finishing with 901 assists for the season, including 265 in CCC play, good for a 10.60 assists/set average. Overall, Gifford averaged 8.83 assists/set and 2.42 digs/set as she has picked up 247 digs to date. Heading into NCAA Division III Tournament play, the setter has posted 12 double-doubles, including a season-best 45 assist, 19 dig effort in the team's 3-2 win over Roger Williams in the CCC Championship match. This is the first AVCA All-New England Region Honorable Mention distinction of Gifford's young career.
The duo will look to lead the Endicott women's volleyball team in the NCAA DIII Tournament as the Gulls will take on Ithaca tomorrow at 12:30 p.m. in the opening round. The regional pod that Endicott is in will be hosted at Clarkson, in Potsdam, N.Y. Live stats and video broadcast links can be found on the schedule page, here.