Nov. 15, 2001
Georgia Tech’s Maja Pachale (Schwerin, Germany) was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year and Lauren Sauer (Huntsville, Ala.) garnered Rookie of the Year honors while Kyleen Bell (Rocklin, Calif.), Kele Eveland (Grand Rapids, Mich.), Lynnette Moster (Liberty, Ind.), were each named to all-Atlantic Coast Conference volleyball teams at the ACC’s annual volleyball banquet Thursday afternoon.
Pachale garnered the Player of the Year title after a stellar senior season. The outside hitter leads the Jackets in kills with 399 and is ranked second in the conference in kills per game (4.43). The all-time career kill leader at Georgia Tech, Pachale is ranked 10th in the league in hitting percentage (.285) and is fourth on the team in digs (215). In addition to being named Player of the Year, Pachale also earned first team all-ACC honors for the third time in her career. Pachale joins former standout Kerry Annel (1992-95) as the only other player from Georgia Tech to earn the distinction as Player of the Year.
Sauer received the Rookie of the Year award and was named to the all-freshman team after starting the entire season on the rightside for the Yellow Jackets. Sauer ranks third on the team in blocks per game (.79) and has recorded a career-high seven blocks in two matches this season. The Huntsville, Ala., native is fourth on the team in kills per game (1.94) and hitting percentage (.235) and recently recorded a career high 18 kills in a match against Maryland.
Bell earned second team all-ACC after starting the entire year at middle blocker for the Jackets. The senior ranks seventh in the conference with a .302 hitting percentage, which is second on the team. In addition, she ranks second on the team in blocks per game (.88) and in kills per game (3.32). This is the third time Bell has garnered all-ACC honors in her career.
A sophomore setter, Eveland joins Bell on the all-ACC second team. The 2000 Rookie of the Year, Eveland is second in the conference in assists per game (12.44) and also ranks ninth in the league in digs per game (2.77). She has directed an offense which ranks first in the conference in kills per game (16.29), hitting percentage (.256), and assists per game (14.62).
Also garnering second team all-ACC honors is Lynnette Moster who was recognized for her play as a defensive specialist. Moster currently ranks third on the team in digs (218), averaging 2.45 per game, and is third in the conference in aces per game (.49). In addition to earning second-team all-ACC accolades, Moster was also named to the all-ACC freshman squad.
Georgia Tech (18-6, 12-4) enters the 22nd annual ACC Championship tournament as the number three seed and will face sixth-seeded Maryland (11-13, 7-9) at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. The tournament is being held in Tallahassee, Fla., and the championship match will be broadcast live on the ACC Regional television package (Fox Sports Net South, Home Team Sports, Sunshine Network, Comcast Sports) on Sunday at 1 p.m.
