Nov. 6, 2006
FAIRFIELD, Conn. -Fairfield continued to rack up weekly volleyball accolades from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) as junior Kelly Oliver (San Diego, Calif./La Jolla) and freshman Barbie Thistle (Bakersfield, Calif./Bakersfield) were named the respective Offensive Player and Rookie of the Week. It is the first award of the season for Oliver while Thistle garners her fifth rookie honor of the year. Both Stags had outstanding weeks as they helped Fairfield (19-6, 16-0) go 2-0 on the week and clinch its third-straight MAAC Regular Season Championship.
Oliver was named the Offensive Player of the Week after posting back-to-back double-doubles while averaging 4.00 kills and 3.14 digs per game while hitting .417 for the week. Against Rider, Oliver collected 11 kills and did not commit an error in 26 total attempts. Against Manhattan, Oliver led Fairfield with a career-high 17 kills and 10 digs, along with a season-best four total blocks and a .412 hitting percentage. For the year, Oliver is 2.42 kills, 2.74 digs and 0.35 blocks per game.
Thistle had another solid week for the Stags, averaging 10.86 assists along with 2.29 digs and 2.14 kills. She posted her seventh double-double of the year with 43 assists and 13 digs against Manhattan. The setter also added eight kills and three total blocks. Thistle has had a phenomenal year with the Stags, as she leads the MAAC with 12.34 assists per game while her 0.56 aces per game rank her third in the conference. She has also been in the top-25 in the nation in aces per game for the past three weeks, and was ranked as high as eighth.
Fairfield, which is riding a 16-match winning streak, has two more regular season conference matches left as the Stags head to Saint Peter's on Nov. 8 and Loyola on Nov. 11. The Stags will be the top seed in the 2006 MAAC Volleyball Championship held Nov. 16-19 at the Disney Wide World of Sports complex in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
