ERIE, Pa. – Hannah Saunders (Elizabeth, PA/Elizabeth Forward) has been named the 2017 Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) Player of the Year while joining Rachel Frye (Leechburg, PA/Kiski) and Kylie McSwaney (Greensburg, PA/Greensburg Salem) on the All-AMCC Team, announced on Wednesday.
Saunders is the fifth Player of the Year in program history and head coach Phil Pisano earned Coach of the Year for a fifth time after mentoring the Lions to their fourth overall AMCC Championship while winning 15 of their last 16 matches.
In addition to Player of the Year honors, Sanders was named to the All-AMCC first team. Frye was chosen to the second team and McSwaney was selected to the third team.
Saunders has been an All-Conference selection all four years. In AMCC matches, she ranks third in assists (257), assists per set (7.79) and fifth attack percentage (.267). Overall, she leads the team and conference in assists (788). Saunders also added 206 digs (fourth on team) and 140 kills (third on team). She was ECAC and AMCC Athlete of the Week, while earning All-Tournament Team three times including the conference championship tournament team. This season, Saunders moved into third place on the all-time assists chart with 3,320 assists to date.
Frye is earning her second All-AMCC honors after being named to the first team a year ago. She is first on the team and third in the conference in kills (286), and is fifth in the AMCC in attack percentage (.248). The team captain also has 100 digs, 20 blocks and 19 service aces. Frye tallied double-digit kills in 14 matches, including a career-high 22 kills against Alfred.
McSwaney was selected to the third team for her first All-Conference accolade. She ranked second in the conference service aces 49 and is fourth in attack percentage (.256). McSwaney also sits 10th in blocks with 48. She had a perfect game, going 13-for-13 with no errors to match a career high in kills in a 3-0 win against Misericordia.
