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Date: November 9, 2005
Contact: Bill Sodoma
Colby's Cleaver named NESCAC Player of Year in volleyball
WATERVILLE, Maine ---- Colby College senior outside hitter Cait Cleaver (Unionville/Kennett Square, Pa.) was named the New England Small College Athletic Conference Volleyball Player of the Year just three days after leading the Mules to the league championship.
Colby head coach Candice Parent was named NESCAC Coach of the Year for the second time and junior libero Kendall Kirby (Piedmont/Piedmont, Calif.) was the league's Defensive Player of the Year.
Cleaver and senior middle blocker Kaitlin Adams (Athol/Athol, Mass.) both earned first team honors. Cleaver was named NESCAC All-Conference for the fourth year in a row, while Adams has been honored the past two seasons.
Cleaver is the all-time leader in career kills (1,651) and defensive digs (1,585) for the Mules heading into NCAA tourney play. Cleaver also holds single-match records for kills in a four-game match (22), digs in a four-game match (44) and kills in a season (486). She leads the Mules this year with the 486 kills, 492 digs, 95 blocks and 47 service aces.
Kirby is the only player in the NESCAC to lead the conference in two different categories. She averages 5.24 digs per game and 0.83 service aces per game. Kirby has single-season Colby records in digs (692) and aces (110).
Adams leads the NESCAC in hitting percentage (.386) and is the Colby leader in blocks with 122. She has 853 kills and 220 blocks in her career despite seeing limited time in her first season with the Mules. Adams holds the Colby single-season record for blocks with her total this season and should have the single-season hitting percentage record when the Mules' season finally ends.
Parent, in her 11th season as Colby's head coach, also earned NESCAC Coach of the Year honors in 2002. She has led her current group of seniors to a record of 101-32 over the last four years, including the NESCAC title this season.
Colby will play Mount Ida at home in the NCAA Division III Tournament on Thursday at 8:30 p.m.
