Haleigh Washington is Within Reach of NCAA Record for Hitting %

Penn State senior middle blocker Haleigh Washington is seeking to become just the 5th category-eligible* player in NCAA women’s volleyball history to hit better than .500 in a season.

* – note, the NCAA record book only lists 4 players, prior to Washington, who have done it. However, Penn State’s record book lists a .501 hitting percentage for Lori Babreich in 1981, the first season of NCAA volleyball, but without enough attacks to meet the NCAA standard.

The senior middle blocker currently leads the nation with a .515 hitting percentages this season, on 485 attacks (280 kills, 30 errors). The next-closest player in that category this season is North Texas’ Amanda Chamberlain, who has a .477 efficiency rate.

She would have to go on a monstrous tear (and in her toughest stretch of the season – finishing the regular year with Minnesota, and then against NCAA tournament competition) to catch the all-time leader, Arielle Wilson. Wilson’s .540 hitting percentage in 2009 is a whopping 21 points better than the next-closest single-season output. Wilson was also a Nittany Lion, so Washington is also chasing her own school record. But Washington could wind up with the 2nd-best season ever, and is currently on pace for the 2nd-best season in the 25-point rally scoring era (2008-present).

All-Time Single-Season NCAA Hitting Percentage Leaders (Category-Eligible, All Eras)

1. Arielle Wilson, Penn Sate, 2009 – .540 (25-point rally scoring era)
2. Tyrona Clark, Florida A&M, 1988 – .519 (1981-2000 era)
3. Haleigh Washington, Penn State, 2017 – .515 (25-point rally scoring era – in progress)
4. Chloe Mann, Florida, 2013 – .506 (25-point rally scoring era)
5. Maria Andonova, Florida A&M, 2004 – .504 (3o-point scoring format)

Washington is also chasing Wilson’s Penn State record for career hitting percentage. Wilson finished her career hitting .468 between 2007-2010. As of posting, Washington’s career hitting percentage is .461 (1081 kills, 177 errors, 1,962 attacks). Wilson’s hitting percentage is the 2nd-best (minimum 1,500 attacks) in NCAA history, behind only Florida’s Chloe Mann, who hit .476 from 2010-2013.

To Catch…

Penn State has 3 regular-season games left, plus up to 6 NCAA tournament games (if Penn State advanced to the NCAA Championship game). So far this season, she’s been averaging about 18 attacks per game. If she remains on that pace, the table below shows what her hitting percentage would have to be in her remaining games (which could be as few as 4, and as many as 9) to achieve certain milestones. The hitting percentage in the table is what her hitting percentage would have to be in just the remaining games, rather than across the 2017 season.