Lady Vols Earn Honors

After leading the University of Tennessee volleyball team to its third straight NCAA Tournament appearance and sixth in the last seven years, seniors Nikki Fowler and Leah Hinkey and junior Kayla Jeter were honored with All-South Region accolades from the American Volleyball Coaches Association on Tuesday.
The award marks the third time in her career that Fowler has picked up the honors, while Hinkey and Jeter take home the laurels for the first time in their careers. All three Lady Vols will advance to the ballot for national AVCA awards, which will be announced in conjunction with the 2010 NCAA Volleyball Championships in Kansas City, Mo.
The most decorated player in UT volleyball history, Fowler has already been named the 2010 Southeastern Conference Co-Scholar Athlete of the Year, an All-SEC First Team selection for the third time straight season and recently became just the second Lady Vol to be tabbed a first team Academic All-American.
Fowler’s name can be found all over the Tennessee record book as she finished her time as a Lady Vol ranked in the top 10 in seven career categories. A native of Dallas, Texas, she stands first all-time in total attacks (4,426), third in attacks per set (9.54), fourth in kills (1,649), sixth in kills per set (3.55), sixth in digs (1,281), seventh in digs per set (2.76) and eighth in blocks (344).
Over the course of her four-year career at Rocky Top, Fowler notched a double-double in 41.9 percent of her collegiate contests, accomplishing the feat 52 times in 124 career matches. In 2010, she led the Lady Vols with 393 kills (3.51/set) and 938 attacks (8.38/set), ranked second with 324 digs (2.89/set), third with a career-best .306 hitting percentage and fifth with 61 blocks (0.54/set).
A 5-11 outside hitter, Jeter continued to establish herself as one of the top offensive weapons in the conference this season, earning All-SEC First Team accolades. She ranked second on the squad and 10th in the league with 340 kills (2.98/set) and hit at a stellar .304 clip, good for fourth on the team. The Solon, Ohio, product also led UT with 19 solo blocks and was third with 76 total putbacks
Jeter took over a six-rotation role 13 matches into the season, becoming a primary passer for the Big Orange. She sported a .965 reception percentage with just 14 errors in 398 total attempts and nearly doubled her previous career high with 184 digs (1.61/set) this season. Jeter hit .300 or higher in 16 matches, over .400 in nine contests and over .500 on five occasions. An All-SEC Second Team member last year, she led UT in kills 10 times this season and topped the Lady Vols with 235 kills (3.36/set) in their 30 SEC matches.
Hinkey finished her career on a high note, playing her best volleyball as a senior en route to All-SEC Second Team honors. A 6-1 middle blocker, she hit at a team-leading .367 clip, which ranked fifth among all SEC players. She also finished the year third in the league and topped UT with 131 blocks (1.15/set) and placed second on the squad with 18 aces and fourth with 218 kills (1.91/set).
Hinkey's name will also go down in the record books as she finished with a five-year total of 583 blocks, good for third in school history. Her 1.24 blocks per set average, meanwhile, places second behind only former teammate Sarah Blum's mark of 1.55, and her .285 career hitting percentage puts her in 10th all-time at UT.
The SEC was well represented in the AVCA South Region awards with 12 of the 20 players honored coming from the league. Nine players found their way to the all-region team, while three more claimed honorable mention accolades.