Bears Land Five Student-Athletes on 2009 All-UAA Team

St. Louis, Mo., November 11, 2009 – The No. 4 Washington University in St. Louis volleyball team had five student-athletes earn 2009 All-University Athletic Association (UAA) honors, as announced Wednesday by the conference office.

Senior middle hitter Erin Albers, sophomore middle hitter Lauren Budde and freshman libero Kelly Pang each garnered first-team all-UAA recognition. Freshman setter Marilee Fisher earned second-team honors and senior defensive specialist Laura Brazeal was an honorable mention all-UAA selection.

Washington U. finished second at the 2009 UAA Championship last weekend in Chicago, Ill., falling to then No. 4 Emory University, 3-0, in the conference championship match. WU and Emory each had a conference-best five student-athletes earn all-UAA honors, and the Bears were second in the league with three first-team honorees, trailing only Emory’s four first-team selections.

Albers is a first-team all-UAA honoree for the second year in a row, and it is the third time in her career she has garnered all-UAA accolades, earning second-team honors as a sophomore in 2007. This year, she leads Washington University in kills (348) and hitting percentage (.355), ranking second on the team with 94 total blocks. Albers ranked fourth in the UAA in kills, and fifth in the conference and 15th in NCAA Division III in hitting percentage.

Budde is having a break-out year for the Bears as a six-rotation middle hitter, earning all-UAA honors for the first time in her career. She finished the regular season second on the team with 346 kills and 383 digs, an average of 3.26 and 3.61 digs per set, and she led the Red and Green with 100 total blocks. Compiling a team-high 16 double-doubles, Budde ranked fifth in the UAA in kills and sixth in digs.

Pang has nearly put up near record-breaking numbers in just her first season on the Danforth Campus. The 5-foot-1-inch libero leads the UAA and ranks 39th in NCAA Division III with 5.55 digs per set. Her 577 digs this season leave her just 29 shy of the Washington University single-season record of 606, set by Nicole Hodgman in 2003. Pang has eclipsed 30 digs in a match on three occasions in 2009, and has posted more than 20 digs in 13 contests.

As the Bears’ offensive floor general, in her first season of collegiate competition all Fisher has done is lead NCAA Division III in assists per set with 11.49 (781 total assists). She has also tallied 80 kills, an average of 1.18 per set, 99 digs and 36 total blocks. Fisher set her career-high in assists of 62 in the Bears’ five-set victory over the University of St. Thomas on Sept. 19.

Brazeal earns honorable mention all-UAA honors for a third-straight season. She ranks third at Washington University this season with 302 digs, an average of 2.85 per set, and she is tied for the team lead with 32 service aces. Over the course of her career Brazeal has tallied 1,499 digs, which ranks fifth in school history.

Washington University (28-4) earned an at-large selection to the 2009 NCAA Division III Tournament, and will host the NCAA Central Regional from Thursday-Saturday, Nov. 12-14, at the WU Field House in St. Louis, Mo. The Bears begin postseason competition on Thursday against St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) Webster University at 8 p.m.