Hanna Heralded as Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Week
9/25/2017 1:57:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Junior averaged 1.71 blocks to help Ladyjacks win first two Southland matches
Complete Southland Conference Release
FRISCO, Texas - For the first time in her collegiate career, Stephen F. Austin junior Makenzee Hanna has earned the title of Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Week. The announcement came in a press release delivered by the league office Monday afternoon following a pair of victories for the Ladyjacks to begin league action this past week.
Out of DeSoto, Texas, Hanna menaced the opposition with both her offensive and defensive execution to help the Ladyjacks open up Southland Conference play with back-to-back wins for the seventh-straight season.
Hanna recorded six blocks in each of the Ladyjacks' wins over Central Arkansas (3-0) and Northwestern State (3-1) last week, helping her rise to second among all league players in blocks per set (1.71) in Southland Conference-only matches. Hanna is one of six players in the 13-team conference who are averaging more than one block per set and thanks in part to her skill in the front row, SFA leads the league in opponent attack percentage, holding its foes to an attacking clip of .161.
As impressive as Hanna's defensive numbers were during the wins, the junior's efforts on offense were equally sublime. During the two-match stretch, Hanna pounded down eight kills in each tilt and did not commit an error during her 23 total swings. She posted a career-best attack percentage of .667 Thursday evening against Central Arkansas only to reset it less than 48 hours later by attacking at a .727 clip against Northwestern State.
So far, no player in the Southland Conference has racked up more blocks than the 67 Hanna has to her credit this season. That total is the 34th-highest among all NCAA Division I volleyball players. Completing her résumé as a dangerous two-way player, Hanna is tops in the 13-team Southland Conference and 74th nationally with a hitting percentage of .367.
One of four remaining Southland Conference squads without a setback in league play as of this writing, the Ladyjacks' lone match of the week will take place in Houston, Texas, on Saturday afternoon. There, SFA clashes with Houston Baptist at 1:00 p.m. inside Sharp Gymnasium.
-SFA-
