FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 19, 2008

Lions land two on All-MIAA team

Kansas City, Mo. -- Missouri Southern junior libero Kari Hammerbacher and sophomore outside hitter Ashlee Russell have both been named honorable mention All-MIAA today in a vote by the coaches in the league.

Hammerbacher, a repeat selection from a year ago, is a 5-2 libero from Buffalo, Mo. She led the Lions in digs this year with 3.71 per game and 438 total. In her career, Hammerbacher has 991 digs and is just 124 away from cracking the school's top ten list. She also ranked fifth in the MIAA this year with 0.25 service aces per game.

Russell, a 5-8 outside hitter from Buffalo, earns her first All-MIAA nod. This season, Russell finished third on the team in kills, and fourth on the team in attack average, while finishing third in blocks and second in points.

The complete All-MIAA team is listed below.

First Team
++*Allie Cherven, TSU         MH  6-1	Sr.	St. Charles, Mo.
$$*Monica Miesner, WU         OH 5-11	Sr.	Florissant, Mo.
+*Arica Shepard, ESU          OH  5-9 	Jr. 	Rossville, Kan.
*Sammie Williams, PSU         RH  6-1	Sr.	Independence, Mo.
++Pamela Cartagena, PSU       OH  5-7 	Jr. 	Bayamon, P.R.
+Melissa Keck, TSU            RH  6-0 	Sr. 	Belleville, Ill.
*Ting Liu, ESU                 S  6-1	So.	Beijing, China
Rachel Fister, UCM             L  5-9	So.	Labadie, Mo.

*=Unanimous choice
+=Repeat first-team choice from 2007
++=Repeat first-team choice from 2006 & 2007
$$=Repeat first-team choice from 2005 & 2007
  
Second Team
Paula Harris, UCM             MH  6-1	Fr.	Conway Springs, Kan.
Allie Huffman, UCM            OH 5-11	Fr.	Lee's Summit, Mo.
Linda Igbinigie, PSU          MH  6-4	Sr.	Richardson, Texas
Megan Koster, ESU             OH 5-10	Sr.	Clay Center, Kan.
Eli Medina, TSU               OH  5-8 	Sr. 	Kansas City, Mo.
Ellen Thommes, UNO            MH  6-0	Jr.	Omaha, Kan.
Caitlin Pankratz, UCM          S  5-7	Jr.	Buhler, Kan.
Whitney Boehler, TSU           L 5-10	Sr.	Olathe, Kan.
   
Third Team
Hannah Carter, ESU            MH  6-0	Sr.	Olathe, Kan.
Ashley Jurgensmeyer, SBU      MH  6-1	Fr.	Osceola, Mo.
Sara Kampschneider, UNO       OH 5-10	Jr.	Dodge, Neb.
Mollie Lacy, WU               MH 5-11	Fr.	Lincoln, Neb.
Brittney Miller, ESU          RH 5-10	So.	Paola, Kan.
Ashley Shepard, WU            OH 5-10	So.	Rossville, Kan.
Kate Hampson, WU               S  5-7	Jr.	Fort Collins, Colo.
Kayla Jansen, UNO              L  5-6	Jr.	Omaha, Neb.
   
Honorable Mention
Sara Falcone, NWMSU           MH  6-0	So.	Omaha, Neb.
Klaudia Grelowska, PSU     OH/RH  6-1	Sr.	Belchatow, Poland
Dana Hanselmann, TSU       MH/OH  6-0	Sr.	Sleepy Hollow, Ill.
Lillian Rezende, FHSU         OH  6-1	Jr.	Franca, Brazil
Ashlee Russell, MSSU          OH  5-8	So.	Spokane, Mo.
Amber Ryan, NWMSU             MH  6-0	So.	Esko, Minn.
Kelli Sicner, MWSU            OH 5-10	So.	Omaha, Neb.	
Stephanie Nitz, WU            MH  6-2	Sr.	Moline, Ill.
Jacquelyn Williams, UCM       MH 5-11	Sr.	Overland Park, Kan.
Emily Myers, UNO               S 5-10	Fr.	Modesto, Calif.
Ashley Petak, TSU              S  5-7	So.	Omaha, Neb.
Emily Vosseler, PSU            S 5-10	Jr.	Leavenworth, Kan.
Amy Byfield, ESU               L  5-4	Jr.	Mission, Kan.
Kari Hammerbacher, MSSU        L  5-2	Jr.	Buffalo, Mo.
Molly Smith, WU                L  5-5	So.	Overland Park, Kan.
Paige Spangenberg, NWMSU       L  5-8	So.	Red Oak, Iowa
  
Most Valuable Player: Ting Liu, S, ESU
Freshman of the Year: Allie Huffman, OH, UCM
Coach of the Year: Bing Xu, ESU

Legend: L=Libero, MH=Middle Hitter, OH=Outside Hitter, 
RH=Rightside Hitter, S=Setter