Budinska
Budinska
MACON, Ga. - North Florida's No. 2 pair of Anna Budinska and Cari Whitmire were selected as the A-Sun Sand Volleyball Pair of the Year as the Atlantic Sun announced the 2014 All-Conference and Postseason Awards. Mercer's Tori Penrod captured Freshman of the Year honors, while Osprey Head Coach Steve Loeswick earned his third Coach of the Year honor.
Budinska and Whitemire posted a perfect 8-0 record during A-Sun play this season and went 22-6 overall, including 17-4 in dual match play, helping North Florida capture their second straight regular season title. The pair was named Co-Champions of the FIU Sand & Surf Gold Bracket tournament and won their final seven dual matches. They closed their regular season qualifying for the Gold Bracket at the Fiesta on Siesta tournament. This is Budinska's second Pair of the Year honor, the first playing with Whitmire.
Joining them on the All-Conference team are teammates Dagnija Medina and Kim Hildreth. The No. 1 pair for North Florida went 15-6 and 5-3 in A-Sun dual matches. Two Stetson pairs were selected to the All-Conference Team: Jordann Dierickx/Maren Rygh (14-2, 7-1) and Catherine Coston/Savannah Byl (11-4, 5-3). The final pair to join the All-Conference team are Me
rcer's Natalie Braun/Tori Penrod who compiled a 3-3 A-Sun record as the Bears No. 1 pair. They become the first Mercer pair to be named to All-Conference team in program history.
The A-Sun Freshman of the Year honor goes to Tori Penrod of Mercer, who becomes the first Bears player to win this award. She compiled a 6-8 overall record and helped her pair win matches over LSU, South Carolina, College of Charleston and UAB during non-conference play. Defeated UNF's top pair in the No. 1 flight on March 29. Her teammate Emma Peel also was voted to the All-Freshman team and they were joined by three Stetson players. Kaylee Anderson, Tiffany Creamer and Kristin Lind rounded out the All-Freshman team selections.
North Florida Head Coach Steve Loeswick claims his third Coach of the Year award, leading the team to their second consecutive Atlantic Sun regular season title this year. The Ospreys have compiled a 16-5 overall record, while going 7-1 in A-Sun play. They will be the No. 1 seed heading into the 2014 Atlantic Sun Championship, where they are looking for their third consecutive tournament title.
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