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Virginia's Ashcraft and Davis Earn AVCA All-Region Honors
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Dec. 10, 2003
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – University of Virginia fourth-year volleyball players Whitney Ashcraft (Yorktown, Ind./Burris) and Paige Davis (Austin, Texas/Westlake) have been selected to the 12-player American Volleyball Coaches Association 2003 All-East Region First Team as announced by the AVCA. Eleven of the 12 players named to the first team are from Atlantic Coast Conference schools. It is the first time since 1998 the Cavaliers have placed two players on the All-Region team.
Ashcraft and Davis are the first UVa players to earn first-team All-East Region accolades since Deanna Zwarich captured the honor in 2000. In 1998, Jessica Parsons and Claire Folga became the first two UVa players to earn All-Region honors in the same season. A total of 96 players from eight regions earned first-team honors in 2003.
Ashcraft, who was a 2002 honorable mention All-East Region pick, is one of only three liberos/defensive specialists in the country to earn First-Team All-Region honors in 2003. She is only the second UVa player to garner All-Region honors twice. Beth Brockell was a two-time All-Region performer (1988 and 1989) for Virginia. Earlier this year, Ashcraft became the second UVa volleyball player to garner first-team All-ACC accolades two times (2002 and 2003).
Ashcraft, a two-time regular season tournament MVP in 2003, leads all ACC players in digs (627) and dig per game (5.10). She currently ranks seventh among all Division I players in digs per game in 2003. Her 627 digs this season are the second highest single season total in school history. The three-time team captain is second on UVa’s career digs list with 1,603, which is also seventh on the ACC’s all-time digs list. She twice notched a school record 42 digs in a match this season. Ashcraft set the school mark with 42 digs in a four-game win over Syracuse (September 13) then equaled her impressive school record in a five-game win against North Carolina (November 8). In 2003, she reached double figures in digs in 31 of 34 matches, including the last 17 matches of the season. Ashcraft started all 34 matches and played in all 123 games in 2003.
Davis, a fourth-year outside hitter, earns All-Region honors for the first time in her career. Earlier this year, she captured All-ACC Second Team accolades for the first time. Davis was also an ACC All-Freshmen selection in 2000. She is only the fourth player in UVa volleyball history to register 1,000 career kills and digs. Davis ranks among Virginia’s all-time leaders in both kills and digs. With 1,432 career digs, Davis is third all-time at UVa, while her 1,107 career digs rank seventh. She is also 10th on Virginia’s career service aces list with 114.
Davis, a co-captain in 2003, tallied a career-best 483 kills this season and also possessed a career-best .286 hitting percentage. Her 483 kills are the fourth highest single season total in school history. Davis also recorded 185 digs and a career-best 99 blocks in 2003. Davis was named the MVP of the 2003 Tiger Classic and was also named to two All-Tournament teams. She started all 34 matches this season and played in all 123 games.
The Cavaliers finished the 2003 season with an impressive 25-9 overall record and an 8-8 mark in the ACC. UVa just missed earning a bid to the 2003 NCAA Volleyball Championship.