Lawson Voted AAC Libero of the Year, Viers & Puryea Join Lady Cav Honorees

November 10, 2007

Wise, Va. – After leading the UVa-Wise women’s volleyball defense all season, junior Britney Lawson was voted the Appalachian Athletic Conference Libero of the Year at the league awards banquet last Thursday night. Senior Tasha Viers received All-AAC first team for the third year in a row and setter Sam Puryea made the AAC All-Freshman team.

The three Lady Cavs have helped double the team’s 11 wins from a year ago to 22-13 this season. UVa-Wise also recorded a third place finish at the AAC tournament completed on Saturday after having been eliminated in the first round the previous two years.

Lawson earned the Libero of the Year and All-AAC first team. She led second year head coach Steve Dallman’s defense and the AAC with 6.8 digs per game. The Rye Cove ( Va.) High product earned the NAIA National Libero of the Week and NAIA Region XII Libero of the Week one time apiece and selected for the AAC same honore four times. Britney set the school record for digs with 683. The third-year player had a career-best 47 digs in a five game win over Pikeville. Lawson has 25 aces, six kills and two assists to complete her numbers.

Viers pickedup her third-straight All-AAC first team acclaim. The senior has been the offensive driving force of the Lady Cavs. Tasha paces the AAC in kills (4.7 kills/game) while second in blocks (1.6 blks/game) and third in hitting percentage (.298). Viers earned NAIA Region XII Player of the Week twice and AAC Player of the Week athlete three weeks. The Abingdon native set a Lady Cavs’ season mark with 626 kills in 2007 as well as holding the program’s career record for kills with 1,467. The middle hitter has totaled 212 total blocks, 155 digs, 30 aces and seven assists for the year to date.

Puryea, the UVa-Wise court general, received AAC All-Freshman team status. The setter from Bristol, Tenn. is tops in the league at 11.21 assists per game and 11 th in aces (0.43 aces/gm.). The first-year Lady Cav was named NAIA Region XII Setter of the Week and AAC Setter of the Week three times on the season. Her highest assist match came with 64 against Pikeville College to end the regular season. She has a school record 1,457 assists on the year with 10 matches of 50-plus assists. In 2007, Puryea has added 366 digs, 87 kills, 84 total blocks and 56 aces.