FRISCO, Texas – The Southland Conference released the postseason awards Wednesday as the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi volleyball program saw redshirt-sophomore
Brooklyn Jaeger tabbed the Libero of the Year to also grace the First Team alongside sophomore
Virginia Van Der Werff.
Jaeger is the program's sixth Libero of the Year honoree and first since the 2022 season. She is just the third libero in the Islanders' history to earn the accolade, however, as Kate Klepetka repeated in 2015 and 2016 and Carissa Barnes won in three years straight from 2020-22.
This is both Jaeger's and Van Der Werff's first time being recognized on the All-Conference First Team. Jaeger was a member of the Second Team last season.
Jaeger, from Fayetteville, Texas, ended the regular season leading the league in digs (346) and digs per set (5.67) through the conference slate. She led all conference liberos in good pass percentage (63.4) according to Volleymetrics and passed a 2.30 in conference play which one of only three players in the league reached. Jaeger recorded 10+ in all SLC matches, 11 of which were 20+ performances and two where she tallied over 30 digs. She was a two-time SLC Defensive Player of the Week this year on top of it all.
"Brooklyn had an outstanding season," said head coach
Steve Greene. "Rarely do liberos take the spotlight and shine like her. Obviously, her defense stands out but she is an excellent receiver as well. On top of her skills, she leads our team on and off the court. Keen to always get better, she is so fun to watch compete and improve. Learning can be a difficult process as you get more skilled, but she continues to improve every day. You only get to coach players that give back as much as Brooklyn every so often, and I am so thankful to coach her. Never satisfied, this honor will only fuel her to get even better."
Van Der Werff , from Lansing, Kansas, was a five-time SLC Setter of the Week recipient this year, including three times during the conference slate. In league play, she ranked second in total assists (663) and third in assists per set (11.05). She was responsible for leading the Islanders to first in the league for total kills (868) and second in kills per set (14.23), running the team to a combined .273 hitting percentage in conference.
"Virginia had a stellar season. In each match, she kept getting better. Rarely do players improve as much as she has in such a short time. Gaining confidence has been a huge part of her growth. It is really impressive how she distributed the offense so consistently. Not being complacent, she is always looking for ways to impact the game. I am so proud of her and thankful for the joy she has brought to me and helped me enjoy coaching her. Awards like this are a testament to her work ethic and she is more than deserving," said Greene.
The full Southland Conference release can be viewed
here.
The Islanders will begin their run to defend their tournament title as the SLC Championship weekend begins Friday at 10 a.m. against No. 3 Southeastern.
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