Dec. 18, 2009
TAMPA, Fla. - Penn State senior Megan Hodge (Durham, N.C.) has been named the 2009 AVCA Division I National Player of the Year, the American Volleyball Coaches Association announced. The award was presented this evening at the AVCA All-America/Player of the year banquet held in conjunction with 2009 AVCA Annual Convention in Tampa, Fla.
"I want to thank the AVCA for this award," said Hodge. "I especially want to thank my teammates and my coaches. This wouldn't have been possible without all of them. Finally, I want to thank my parents and my family for all of their support."
This is Penn State's second consecutive and third overall honor. Nicole Fawcett was selected in 2008 and Lauren Cacciamani was co-Player of the Year in 1999. Hodge recently became only the fifth athlete in the 29-year history of the AVCA All-America program to earn AVCA First-Team All-America recognition in all four seasons she wore a Nittany Lion jersey.
Hodge is an all-around player for head coach Russ Rose, who just recorded his 1,000th career victory with a 3-1 win against Hawai'i on Thursday evening in the National Semifinals. The 6-3 outside hitter leads the team with 539 kills, her 4.75 kills per set ranks first in the Big Ten and her .399 attack percentage sits at second in the league behind teammate Arielle Wilson. Hodge is also a threat in the back row ranking second on the squad with 282 digs (2.45 digs per set).
The Durham, N.C. native became Penn State's fourth four-time All-American. She has earned First Team accolades all four years of her career. She is a two-time Big Ten Player of the Year, earning the honor in 2006 as a freshman and 2009 as senior. This is the fifth straight year a Penn State student-athlete has been the league's player of the year.
Hodge has amassed a career record of 141-5 leading up to this year's National Title match. Her and classmate Alisha Glass are the winningest class in program history. During Hodge's career, the Nittany Lions have made three-straight NCAA National Semifinal appearances and advanced to the championship match each time. The team has captured two consecutive national titles and is aiming for an unprecedented third on Saturday, Dec. 19.
Hodge and the Nittany Lions take on No. 2 Texas on Saturday in the National Championship match. Livestats will be available at GoPSUsports.com and the match will be broadcast live on ESPN2. Fans can listen to the match with Dean DeVore and Craig Dyer on Newsradio 103 WRSC-FM (103.1FM) in State College and surrounding areas and around the world for free on GoPSUsports.com. You will be able to email comments and questions during the broadcast to Dean and Craig at PSUVolleyball@gmail.com. In addition, fans can follow the Nittany Lions' trip to Tampa on Twitter, by following @PSUVolleyball or Susanpsusports.
Courtesy of the AVCA.
AVCA Division I National Players of the Year:
2009: Megan Hodge (Penn State)
2008: Nicole Fawcett (Penn State)
2007: Foluke Akinradewo (Stanford)
2006: Sarah Pavan (Nebraska)
2005: Christina Houghtelling (Nebraska)
2004: Stacey Gordon (Ohio State); Ogonna Nnamani (Stanford)
2003: Kim Willoughby (Hawai'i)
2002: Logan Tom (Stanford)
2001: Logan Tom (Stanford)
2000: Greichaly Cepero (Nebraska)
1999: Lauren Cacciamani (Penn State); Kerri Walsh (Stanford)
1998: Misty May (Long Beach State)
1997: Misty May (Long Beach State)
1996: Angelica Ljungquist (Hawai'i)
1995: Cary Wendell (Stanford); Allison Weston (Nebraska)
1994: Laura Davis (Ohio State)
1993: Danielle Scott (Long Beach State)
1992: Natalie Williams (UCLA)
1991: Antoinnette White (Long Beach State)
1990: Bev Oden (Stanford)
1989: Tara Cross (Long Beach State); Teee Williams (Hawai'i)
1988: Tara Cross (Long Beach State)
1987: Teee Williams (Hawai'i)
1986: Mariliisa Salmi (BYU)
1985: Kim Oden (Stanford)
For more information on the Penn State women's volleyball team, please visit www.GoPSUsports.com. The Penn State women's volleyball 2009 season is presented by Rockvale Outlets and The Outlets At Hershey.