Wolverine Duo Earns AVCA All-North Region Team Honors
12/5/2017 1:48:00 PM | Volleyball
LEXINGTON, Ky. -- One week after earning All-Big Ten honors, University of Michigan volleyball junior outside hitter Carly Skjodt earned a selection to the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-North Region team and senior middle blocker Claire Kieffer-Wright earned an honorable mention, it was announced Tuesday (Dec. 5) afternoon. Both Wolverines will now be considered for AVCA All-America honors, which will be announced next Wednesday (Dec. 13).
The All-Region selection is a first for Skjodt, and she will now be considered for her first All-America honor. Skjodt recently garnered her first All-Big Ten Conference honor and captured two Big Ten Player of the Week selections during the 2017 season. She was also named a Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week (Nov. 21), and became the second player in Michigan history to earn the national award. Additionally, Skjodt was named a CoSIDA Academic All-District first-team selection in 2017 and was voted the MVP of the Michigan Challenge Tournament.
In her final season with the Maize and Blue, Kieffer-Wright earned her first postseason conference honor as an All-Big Ten honorable mention after preceding the season with a 2017 Preseason All-Big Ten selection. She is a five-time all-tournament selection and earned her first Big Ten Player of the Week accolade during the 2017 campaign after totaling a career-high nine blocks in a 3-1 win over Ohio State (Sept. 29).
A native of Indianapolis, Indiana, Skjodt started all 33 matches during the 2017 season and played every set as a six-rotation player, posting eight kill-dig double-doubles and leading the Wolverines in kills 23 times. She totaled four 20-plus-kill matches on the year, including a season-high 24 kills through four sets at Michigan State (Oct. 18). She finished the season with a team-leading 433 kills at 3.67 kills per set, and ranked second on the team with 273 digs.
Kieffer-Wright ended her volleyball career as a leader for the Wolverines on both offense and defense. The South Pasadena, California, native started and played every set for the Wolverines at her middle blocker position and led Michigan with a .330 attack average and 114 total blocks. In addition to leading Michigan in blocks 16 times during her senior campaign, she also led the Wolverines in kills 15 times.
Michigan (21-12) recently completed the 2017 season after earning its 17th selection to the NCAA Tournament. After winning five consecutive matches to end the regular season, including a program-best three-straight over top-25 opponents, the Wolverines dropped an NCAA first-round matchup to the No. 23-ranked Colorado State Rams
