Sipe, Fredrickson and Nally Named AVCA Division III Men's Volleyball All-Americans
SPRINGFIELD, Mass., April 10, 2007 – Springfield College sophomore middle blocker Andy Sipe (New Oxford, Pa.) has been named a 2007 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division III Men’s Volleyball First Team All-American, announced Monday afternoon (Apr. 9) by the AVCA media relations office in Lexington, Kentucky. It marks the second straight All-America honors Sipe has received after being named a Second Team selection last season.
In the same announcement, sophomore opposite Ryan Fredrickson (Manahawkin, N.J.) and freshman outside hitter AJ Nally (Rochester, N.Y.) each garnered All-America Second Team honors. For Fredrickson, it is his second consecutive year being named an All-American, as he too landed on the Second Team last season with Sipe. Along with being named a Second Team All-American in just his freshman campaign, Nally has also captured this year’s AVCA Newcomer of the Year award, given to the top-rated freshman in Division III.
Sipe, a native of New Oxford, Pa., leads the Pride in blocking this season with an average of 1.67 blocks per game (145 total). The middle blocker also leads the squad in hitting percentage (.425), as he has recorded 190 kills on 369 swings this season with just 33 errors. Sipe, who was also named Sports Imports/AVCA Division III Men’s National Player of the Week and EIVA Hay Division Player of the Week on Monday afternoon (Apr.9), is second in the entire EIVA this year in blocks and sixth in hitting percentage. This season, Sipe recorded a career-best 13 blocks in a win at Harvard (Feb. 24), and a career-high 15 kills in a victory at Division I Rutgers-Newark (Mar. 3).
Fredrickson, who hails from Manahawkin, N.J., rallied after a slow start this season to lead SC in kills with a total of 267 (3.56/game). The two-time All-American has also added 110 digs on the season from the opposite position, good for a 1.47 dig-per-game average (fourth on team), to go along with 55 total blocks. In victories over Division I Harvard University and Rutgers-Newark this season, Fredrickson tallied season-best totals of 23 kills. In a five-game victory over Rutgers-Newark, the sophomore racked up 23 kills on 39 attempts with eight errors for a solid .385 hitting percentage. In the Pride’s 3-0 victory over Division II UCSD in the Volleyball Hall of Fame-Morgan Classic, Fredrickson registered a career-high 10 blocks.
Nally, a resident of Rochester, N.Y., is currently ranked fifth in the entire EIVA in digs with a team-high total of 203 (2.33/game). The freshman outside hitter has also racked up totals of 256 kills (2.94/game) and 203.5 points (3.37/game), both good for second-best on the squad. One of the highlights of Nally’s rookie campaign came on February 10th when he joined Eric Palumbo on the All-Tournament Team at the Volleyball Hall of Fame-Morgan Classic. Another one of Nally’s highlights came against Juniata College at home on March 24th, when the outside hitter recorded a season-high 28 kills on 47 swings with just six errors for a .468 hitting percentage. Nally, who was named EIVA Hay Division Player of the Week back on January 17th, registered a season-best 17 digs in a win at Division I Harvard University on February 24th.
SC (18-8) is currently preparing to face Juniata College in the semifinals of the Molten Division III Invitational Championship in Huntingdon, Pa., on Friday, April 13th at 8:00 p.m. It will be the fourth time that these two teams have hooked up, with the Eagles holding a 2-1 edge in the season series. The Pride’s trip to Juniata marks the third time that SC will play the Eagles at Memorial Gymnasium this season. In other semifinal action on Friday at 5:00 p.m., No. 1 Carthage College will face fourth-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology. Juniata and SC represent the second and third seeds, respectively.
Team Links
- 2010 Schedule
- 2010 Roster
- 2009 Statistics
- 2008 Recruiting Brochure (.pdf)
- EIVA Website
- Bison/AVCA Division III Men's Coaches Top 15 Poll
- Live Stats
- Team Archive
Head Coach Charlie Sullivan
With four national championships to his credit, Charlie Sullivan will enter his 12th season as head coach of the men's volleyball team in 2010. In 11 previous years at the helm, Sullivan owns an overall record of 153-124 for a .552 winning percentage. Read more.