Published: November 02, 2009 11:38 pm      

Thrice as nice

Bearkat duo sweeps Southland honors for second consecutive week

Sam Houston State senior Anna Ferguson and freshman Kaylee Hawkins were named the Southland Conference’s Volleyball Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, by vote of the league’s sports information directors.

The sweep gives the Bearkats their third of the season and SHSU is the first Southland team since Stephen F. Austin in 2005 to sweep the weekly player awards with the same duo in consecutive weeks.

The Bearkats, winners of their last 11 matches (the longest winning streak by SHSU since 1994), swept the weekly awards previously on Oct. 5 and again last week, giving Sam Houston four straight awards and seven of the last 10, the most awards by a Sam Houston State squad since the 1990 season.

Ferguson and Hawkins each receives their third award of the season and are the first Bearkats to win three player of the week awards since former Bearkat standout Sarah Womble in 1992.

Ferguson, a native of Dallas, led Sam Houston in kills in victories over Texas-San Antonio and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Ferguson picked up her 1,000th career kill in SHSU’s match against the Islanders on Saturday to move into the top-20 all-time at SHSU in career kills.

Ferguson currently ranks third in the league in overall kills (386) and in kills per set (3.45). Both wins over the Roadrunners and Islanders went five sets, giving the Kats a 10-2 record in five-set matches this year.

Hawkins, a native of Dickinson, led the Sam Houston defense with 62 digs in two matches. Hawkins currently ranks third in the league in overall digs (429) and in digs per set (4.12). She is one of only four league players with more than 400 digs this season.

Leaders in the Southland Conference West Division with an 11-1 league record, the Bearkats play their final four regular season matches on the road. Sam Houston travels to Texas-Arlington on Thursday and Texas State on Saturday.

On the final weekend of the year, the Kats play at SLC East Division leader Central Arkansas and Northwestern State.