News Releases
Lauren Holbrook Named AVCA All-Midwest Region
12/8/2004
Nichol Amberg earns Honorable Mention honors after championship season
Lauren Holbrook was named AVCA All-Midwest Region for the third time in her career |
CHICAGO (DECEMBER 8, 2004) -Â After a memorable season in which the Loyola volleyball squad won the Horizon League Tournament and made its fourth NCAA Tournament appearance, its two catalysts were honored today as seniors Lauren Holbrook (Indianapolis, Ind.) and Nichol Amberg (Tulsa, Okla.) earned all-region accolades by the American Volleyball Coaches Association. Holbrook was named to the 12-player All-Midwest Region squad while Amberg was one of six additional players to earn honorable mention recognition.
For Holbrook, the honor caps a senior season in which she became Loyola's all-time leader in both assists (5,393) and digs (1,297), becoming the first Rambler to reach the 5,000 assists milestone. The career totals put Holbrook in exclusive company on the national scene, as she was just the third player in the rally-scoring era (2001-present) to hand out 5,000 assists and dig 1,000 balls in a career. With her selection to the All-Horizon League squad last month, Holbrook also became the first Loyola volleyball player to earn all-conference accolades in each of her four seasons. This marks the third time she has earned all-region recognition, earning AVCA All-Midwest honors in 2001 and honorable mention last season.
The award caps a fantastic senior season for Amberg, a season in which she blossomed as Loyola's top offensive weapon. Amberg pounded out 479 kills for the season, the fifth-highest single-season total in LU history, and finished her career with 1,321 put-aways to rank fifth in Loyola's all-time annals. Defensively, Amberg finished her career with 1,151 digs to become one of just eight Rambler spikers to reach 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in a career. She earned All-Horizon League honors for the first time this season and put together two of the best matches of her career in the last two rounds of the Horizon League tournament, slamming 26 kills in the semifinals against Butler and putting down a career-high 30 kills in the final against Cleveland State, en route to being named tournament Most Valuable Player.
Under first-year head coach Tim O'Brien, the Ramblers finished the 2004 season with a 22-9 record, suffering a close loss at Wisconsin in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
