Wake Forest Athletics
Awards Handed Out At Annual Volleyball Banquet
4/26/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
April 26, 2004
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.-- The Wake Forest volleyball team held its annual postseason banquet Friday April 16 at the Piedmont Club in downtown Winston-Salem. Players, coaches, staff and alumni attended the event with several members of the team being honored with awards.
Demon Deacon sophomore Valerie Rydberg was presented with two awards at the banquet. Rydberg was named the team's Most Valuable Player and won the Dedication Award for her work ethic in the weight room. The MVP award recognizes the student-athlete who by virtue of her athletic talents made the most visible impact on the team during the season. The Lemont, Ill. native was named first team All-ACC in 2003, AVCA All-Region and honorable mention All-America. Rydberg, an outside hitter, led the Deacs in most offensive categories, including kills (429) and service aces (73) and recorded a team-best 372 digs. Rydberg was also named ACC Player of the Week twice during the 2003 season and was only player in the league to rank in the top five in both kills per game and digs per game.
Senior Jessica Hauff received Most Valuable Offensive Player honors after an outstanding season. This award recognizes the athlete who made a significant contribution to the team's success through her offensive play. The middle blocker from Huntsville, Alabama hit .311 with 247 kills and ranked second on the team with 85 total blocks. Hauff finished her career as a Demon Deacon sixth on Wake Forest's career kills list with 731 and fifth on the all-time blocks list with 269.
Freshman Natasha Schaefer was named the team's Most Valuable Defensive Player in 2003. This award recognizes the athlete who made a significant contribution through her defensive play. The Deacon libero from Cooper City, Florida ranked second on the team with 284 digs and 3.09 digs per game despite missing time with an injury in the middle of the season.
The Rookie of the Year award was presented to Lauren Peterson who played in 27 matches as a freshman and recorded 153 kills to go along with 31 service aces and 26 total blocks. This award recognizes the player who, in her first year of competition at Wake Forest made major contributions to the success of the team.
Junior middle blocker Morgan Havig received the Demon Deacon Award, given to the athlete who has made significant contributions to the team through her achievements as a student and as an athlete. This athlete symbolizes a standard of excellence in and out of the gym, always seeking to bring out the best in her teammates, and unselfishly devotes herself to reaching team goals. Havig was named to the Black and Gold Challenge All-Tournament Team before suffering a season-ending injury in September.
