Howard’s Khaila Donaldson Named MEAC Player Of The Year

Press Release courtesy of MEAC

Howard outside hitter Khaila Donaldson was named the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Player of the Year, the conference office announced today. Florida A&M’s Candelaria Herrera was named Rookie of the Year, while Toby Rens of Maryland Eastern Shore earned Coach of the Year honors.

All awards were voted on by the conference’s head coaches and sports information directors.

Donaldson led the MEAC in kills (3.61 per set) and points (4.15 per set) in being named Player of the Year for the second straight season, helping the Bison to a 9-3 mark in conference play. The Preseason Player of the Year was also named Player of the Week twice this season, and she recorded a season-high 23 kills this past weekend against Morgan State. Donaldson recorded double-digit kills in 19 of her last 21 matches, and for the season, she recorded 12 double-doubles – including a stretch of five in a row from Sept. 19 through Oct. 4.

Herrera led the MEAC in hitting percentage at .380 and digs with 4.53 per set in her freshman season, leading the Lady Rattlers to a 9-1 record in conference play and a share of the Southern Division regular-season title. Her 0.91 blocks per set ranked fifth in the conference, and her 3.55 points per set also ranked eighth. Herrera was a five-time MEAC Rookie of the Week this season, and she was also a First Team All-MEAC selection.

Rens led the Hawks to a perfect 12-0 mark in conference play to clinch the Northern Division regular-season title and top seed in the tournament. In addition, Maryland Eastern Shore won 26 matches in the regular season, most in the conference. The Hawks, who were picked to finish second in the conference’s preseason poll, boasts non-conference wins against such schools as William & Mary, George Washington, UNC Asheville and Saint Francis (Pa.).

Joining Donaldson and Herrera on the All-MEAC First Team are Bethune-Cookman’s Rakaya Neely and Phalen Clark, Florida A&M’s Nicole Abreu and Valentina Carrasco and Maryland Eastern Shore’s Iva Vujosevic.

The 2017 MEAC Volleyball Championship begins Friday with the quarterfinal round; the first match is set to begin at 10 a.m. Saturday’s semifinal matches will start at 12 p.m., and Sunday’s championship finale will start at 12 p.m. and be shown live on ESPNU and ESPN3.

For more information on the 2017 MEAC Volleyball Championship, including bracket and full schedule, visit www.MEACsports.com.

2017 MEAC Volleyball Postseason Honors
Voted on by th league’s head coaches and sports information directors

Player of the Year: Khaila Donaldson, Howard
Rookie of the Year: Candelaria Herrera, Florida A&M
Coach of the Year: Toby Rens, Maryland Eastern Shore

FIRST TEAM

SECOND TEAM

ALL-ROOKIE TEAM