COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Texas A&M senior setter Allie Sawatzky has been named to the nine-member volleyball preseason All-SEC team, the Southeastern Conference announced today.
Seven schools are represented on the team, which is voted on by the league’s head coaches. No ties were broken. Preseason league-favorite Florida and Missouri led all schools with two selections each. Auburn, Kentucky, LSU, South Carolina and Texas A&M each had a student-athlete named to the team.
Eight of the nine players selected were named All-SEC first or second team in 2012, including Sawatzky, who was a member of the All-SEC second team after leading the Aggies to a 16-4 conference record and the SEC Western Division title in their league debut. In all, 20 different players received votes for the preseason team.
Sawatzky has started every match of her college career entering her fourth season at the helm of the Aggies. The 6-2 lefty from St. Andrews, Manitoba, Canada, is coming off a decorated season in which she also was named AVCA Honorable Mention All-America, AVCA All-South Region honorable mention and Texas A&M team MVP after averaging 10.31 assists and 1.82 kills per set and directing an Aggie offense that led the SEC and ranked in the top 15 in the nation in both assists (13.53) and kills (14.45) per set in all matches.
Sawatzky, who ranks fourth in A&M records with 3,440 career assists and also has tallied 507 career kills, and the 15 other members of the 2013 Texas A&M volleyball team report Friday afternoon and hold their first official practice Saturday morning. A&M, picked to win the SEC Western Division along with LSU, commences its season August 30 at the North Dakota Classic in Grand Forks, N.D. The Aggies play their home opener Sept. 12 against Siena and begin SEC play Sept. 29 against Georgia at Reed Arena.
Visit AggieAthletics.com for more information on Texas A&M volleyball. Aggie fans also can keep up to date with the A&M volleyball team on Facebook and on Twitter by following @AggieVolleyball.
A list of the 2013 SEC Volleyball Preseason All-SEC team follows.
Preseason All-SEC Team Pos. Ht. Cl. Hometown
Camila Jersonsky, Auburn MB 5-11 Sr. Buenos Aires, Argentina
Chloe Mann, Florida MB 6-2 Sr. Gainesville, Fla.
Živa Recek, Florida OH 6-0 So. Kočevje, Slovenia
Whitney Billings, Kentucky RS 6-2 Sr. Helena, Ala.
Desiree Elliott, LSU MB 6-0 Sr. Cypress, Texas
Lisa Henning, Missouri OH 6-0 Sr. Blue Springs, Mo.
Molly Kreklow, Missouri S 6-0 Sr. Delano, Minn.
Juliette Thévenin, South Carolina OH 6-1 Sr. Mont-sur-Marchinne, Belgium
Allie Sawatzky, Texas A&M S 6-2 Sr. St. Andrews, Manitoba, Canada
Story courtesy of Texas A&M Athletics