JACKSON – The Northwest Mississippi Community College volleyball team saw plenty of representation on the All-MACCC volleyball team this year, with four players earning top honors along with having the Coach of the Year and Player of the Year for the conference.
The list was led by Sofia Gonzalez, who was named the MACCC Player of the Year and to the First Team All-Conference list.
Gonzalez is having a historic season for the Rangers, tallying 421 kills so far and hitting .327 while doing it, only making 105 errors on the season in 965 attack attempts. She has also been fantastic in the serving game and on the back-line defense, tallying 39 aces and adding 288 digs. She was also as strong in her serve receive, only making 15 errors on 380 chances. Her attack was one that was hard to stop all year, and in the last game against Lurleen B. Wallace, she set a program record for the most kills in a match with 26.
"She's definitely worked hard this year," Head Coach Allison Burchyett said. "What an amazing accomplishment for a freshman who is a tremendous talent but an even better young lady. She works really hard; she is a great teammate who does all the things that are asked of her, so I'm very proud of her."
Along with having the Player of the Year, the Rangers also saw Burchyett named the MACCC Coach of the Year after leading Northwest to their first 40-win season and becoming the first team to earn a spot in the NJCAA Division II National Championship.
"It's obviously a team award," Burchyett said. "It's the players, it's Coach David Culver, it's the faculty and staff at Northwest. Everyone is supportive and plays a part in an award like that. It's certainly not a one-person thing, and I give a lot of credit to the team for their buy-in to our system and to our culture."
There were a pair of other First-Team honorees in sophomores Ariana Woods and Jania Rose, and it was the second time for both of them to make the All-Conference list.
For Woods, the season saw her build on impressive numbers from last year, eclipsing the 300-kill mark for the second straight season, with 366 to date and 689 in her career, which is the most in program history. She was also able to show off her talent in blocking, where she set the program record for blocks in a career, picking up her 200th block during the Gulf South District Championship game. Along with all of that, she was second on the team in aces this season with 73 and was the fourth member of this team to join the 100 aces club with four against Lurleen B. Wallace, giving her 103 in her time at Northwest.
Arianna has worked hard as well," Burchyett said. "She was first team last year as well, so it's a huge accomplishment to do it back-to-back. She's also a tremendous talent both offensively and defensively, and her serving has improved a lot in her consistency."
Rose was another player who has made her mark on the program both on the court and in the record books. The sophomore libero was instrumental to the Rangers' success on the back row, making 437 digs on the season so far, and averaging over four digs per set. She was a rock when it came to serve receive, being challenged the most on the team, returning the 480 chances at a .954 clip with only 22 aces against her. She also joined the 100 aces club, making 45 aces this season and is up to 112 in her career.
"Jim is an exceptional defensive talent," Burchyett said. "She works hard, and she gets balls up that most people can't. She is a joy to watch; just to see her go for balls and get them up is amazing to see, so I'm very proud of Jania."
One other Ranger was named to the All-Conference list in freshman outside hitter Valerie Hurdle. The Holly Springs native has put up 285 kills in her first year at the college level and has hit .286 on the season along the way. She had multiple matches where she didn't make an error in her attacks while still having double-digit kills.
"Val came in as a three-rotation player on the outside, and she's been very clutch for us with a high hitting percentage and getting kills when we need them. She's definitely been a part of our offensive focus for the season, and I look forward to seeing her continue to grow."
The Rangers are still going this year, after winning the Region 23 Championship and the Gulf South District Championship in back-to-back weekends. They have their eyes set on a long stay in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, at the NJCAA Division II National Championship, which begins on November 18th and carries through to the 21st. The selection show for the tournament will be held on Wednesday, November 11, at 4 P.M. and will be streamed on the NJCAA Network.
Keep up with news and information on seeding and more for the Northwest volleyball team by visiting nwccrangers.com or by following along on Ranger social media accounts.
