Volleyball News
KVAPIL DOUBLES UP WITH YEAREND AWARDS -- posted Monday, April 27 2009
Kim Kvapil is the UIW Female Athlete of the Year and UIW Student-Athlete of the Year and received her awards from UIW Athletic Director Mark Papich and Faculty Athletic Representative Dr. Sandra Strickland.
It began in the first week of September when she played her way onto the all-tournament team at the Nebraska / Kearney Classic up in the state of Nebraska. And it reached the apex in November when she was voted to two different All-American teams—second team Daktronics and honorable mention American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA).
In between the honors rolled in for senior Kim Kvapil making her perhaps the most decorated female athlete in Incarnate Word history for a single season. Now the Cardinals volleyball star has put the cap on her UIW career with double honors from the school. She has been voted 2008-2009 UIW Student-Athlete of the Year along with being named 2008-2009 UIW Female Athlete of the year.
At the end of every schoolyear Incarnate Word’s coaches and staff vote on three major awards. The male and the female athletes of the year are based solely on performance that particular year on the court or field. The student-athlete of the year is a combination of athletic performance plus success in the classroom. To be on the athlete of the year ballot each performer must be voted athlete of the week sometime during the year. The basic criteria for student-athlete of the year are a 3.5+ grade point average, junior standing and a contributor to his or her team.
From the academic point of view, Kvapil will receive her bachelor’s degree in May in the field of communications. Over her time at UIW she has maintained a cumulative grade point average of 3.74. This year she was voted CoSIDA Academic All-Region. She has been Heartland Conference President’s Honor Roll every year. Kvapil is UIW Dean’s List and she is a member of Alpha Chi Honor Society.
Prior to the All-American squads being announced at the end of the volleyball season, she was the Daktronics South Central Regional Player of the Year as well as being Daktronics All-Region first team. She also was AVCA All-South Central Region.
At the conference level of play she was the Heartland’s player of the year and was first team all-league. She also was Heartland all-tournament.
Perhaps the most notable honor came in the second week of October when she was named AVCA National Player of the Week in Division II. This was just the second time in Incarnate Word volleyball history that a player received that national weekly honor.
On the court in the fall of 2008 she led Incarnate Word as well as the Heartland in kills. Her number of 484 kills ranked 18th in the entire nation. Also, added to her previous number of put-aways, she became UIW’s all-time leader in that category with 1,580.
HONORS CONTINUE FOR KVAPIL -- posted Friday, December 5 2008
Kim Kvapil is an All-American, again, and she now stands alone for honors in a single year at UIW.
Another All-American team has been announced and Incarnate Word’s Kim Kvapil has reached rarified air when talking about honors bestowed on a UIW athlete in a single season.
This time it’s Daktronics and its volleyball All-American squad and Kvapil is on the second team. This honor follows closely her being named honorable mention All-America by the American Volleyball Coaches Association earlier this week.
All totaled, the senior outside hitter has received 10 significant awards this fall and those put her alone atop the UIW awards list for honors in a single season. She has received the 10 beginning at the Heartland Conference level then through the regional teams to the All-American designations.
The La Vernia product is not limited to the volleyball court. Based on her achievements in the classroom and her 3.73 grade point average in the field of communications, she is a member of the Heartland President’s Honor Roll and she was voted third team CoSIDA Academic All-Region.
For the 2008 season Kvapil led both Incarnate Word and the Heartland in kills. Her 495 kills added to her previous cumulative total at UIW makes her the school’s career leader. And in 2008 she recorded 487 digs and she finishes her career at number four on the Incarnate Word all-time list. In 35 matches this fall she recorded 25 double-doubles—double figures in both kills and digs in the same match.
KVAPIL GETS FIRST ALL-AMERICAN NOD -- posted Wednesday, December 3 2008
Senior outside hitter Kim Kvapil has been named to the AVCA All-American squad.
Incarnate Word’s Kim Kvapil at the end of the just-completed 2008 volleyball season has racked up a laundry list of honors and now she can put All-American behind her name.
The American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) has announced its All-American teams and Kvapil is on the honorable mention list. After being AVCA All-South Central Region first team she became the only Heartland Conference player to receive the All-American designation. During October she was named the AVCA national player of the week.
It has been 11 seasons since Incarnate Word had a volleyball athlete proclaimed All-America. Back in 1997 Shelly Snook was first team NAIA while teammate Terry Delgado was third team the same season.
In addition to the AVCA awards, the La Vernia product has been voted Daktronics All-South Central Region first team and regional player of the year. Daktronics is yet to announce its All-American squad.
Following Heartland Conference play, Kvapil was the league’s player of the year while being voted first team all-conference and Heartland all-tournament. During the season she was on two different all-tournament teams and she was named the Heartland’s hitter of the week four times.
In the classroom, Kvapil has posted a 3.73 grade point average and that mark combined with her on-court feats earned her third team CoSIDA academic all-region honors.
The AVCA All-American designation gives Kvapil nine significant honors to date including conference, region and nation and that puts her in select company at UIW. Most recently, for the 2007-2008 baseball season, Dustin Walls garnered eight such awards over the course of his senior year on the diamond.
ANOTHER REGIONAL HONOR FOR KVAPIL -- posted Wednesday, November 26 2008
Senior Kim Kvapil has been named to the AVCA all-region first team.
Incarnate Word’s Kim Kvapil has earned yet another volleyball honor with the announcement of an all-region team.
This first team honor comes from the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) and is for the South Central Region of the NCAA Division II. Once during the fall she was named the AVCA national player of the week, the first time UIW has had a player so recognized.
At the regional level, Kvapil now has a clean sweep of first team honors. Earlier she was named to the Daktronics All-South Central Regional squad as well as being voted the region’s player of the year.
In both cases, Daktronics and AVCA, as a first-team honoree her name now will be placed on ballots to determine the respective All-American squads.
In the Heartland Conference, the senior outside hitter from La Vernia was voted player of the year as well as first team all-league. That was after she led the conference in kills per set and being ranked in the top 10 for digs per set. Over the course of the season she posted 25 double-doubles in those departments—double figures in both categories in the same match.
Additionally, earlier this month, she was voted academic all-region by the College Sports Information Directors of America. She has maintained a 3.73 grade point average over her four years at Incarnate Word while studying communications.
THE HONORS ROLL IN FOR KVAPIL, WEISE -- posted Monday, November 24 2008
Senior outside hitter Kim Kvapil is the South Central Regional player of the year.
Junior middle Edie Weise has been voted South Central All-Region second team.
Incarnate Word senior outside hitter Kim Kvapil has hit the double jackpot, again, with the announcement of the Daktronics All-South Central Regional volleyball team.
The La Vernia product was voted regional player of the year in the Daktronics balloting. Plus, she was named to the first team.
These honors come on the heels of her receiving those same honors in the Heartland Conference. She also was Heartland all-tournament when the Cardinals finished as runners-up. Earlier, Kvapil was voted CoSIDA Academic All-Region with her 3.73 grade point average in communications. Once during the year she was named the American Volleyball Coaches Association national player of the week.
For the season just ended, she led the Heartland in kills (3.84 a set) and was seventh in digs (3.78 a set) on defense. She posted 25 double-doubles in those two statistical areas.
In the Daktronics voting UIW middle blocker Edie Weise was named to the second all-region team. The junior from Luling earlier was voted All-Heartland after leading the league in hitting percentage (.451). Her blocks average of 0.75 a set was 69th among 300 players ranked in Division II.
DAKTRONICS SOUTH CENTRAL REGION
REGIONAL PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Kim Kvapil, Incarnate Word
FIRST TEAM
OH Kim Kvapil, Incarnate Word
OH Laura Prinsen, West Texas A&M
OH Amithy Henry, Texas / Permian Basin
MH Lauren Secord, Dallas Baptist
MH Allie Cherven, Truman State
L Sara Contreras, West Texas A&M
S Ting Liu, Emporia State
SECOND TEAM
OH Arica Shepard, Emporia State
OH Ashley Vander Hey, St. Edward’s
OH Monica Miesner, Washburn
MH Melissa Harper, West Texas A&M
MH Edie Weise, Incarnate Word
L Ashley Alba, Texas / Permian Basin
S Vickie Mundell, Dallas Baptist
KVAPIL DOUBLES UP, NORDMAN HONORED -- posted Thursday, November 6 2008
Senior Kim Kvapil has been named to the region's academic team.
Sophomore Sarah Nordman is the Heartland Conference setter of the week.
A pair of Incarnate Word volleyball players gained weekly honors from the Heartland Conference and Kim Kvapil made it a double for herself including a regional award.
A senior outside hitter, Kvapil was voted third team regional academic by the College Sports Directors of America (CoSIDA). This vote in District 6 is based on her on-court performance as well as her successes in the classroom.
She is a communications major at UIW and her cumulative grade point average is 3.73.
On the court, in the six statistical categories in the Heartland Conference she is top seven in three including leading the league in kills per game 3.73 which matches her GPA.
For the past week when the Cardinals were unbeaten with wins over St. Mary’s and Tarleton State, Kvapil was selected the Heartland’s hitter of the week, the fourth time this fall for that designation.
Also in the Heartland for the past week, sophomore Sarah Nordman was voted the conference setter of the week.
In the week’s two victories for Incarnate Word, Nordman first had 40 assists in the victory over St. Mary’s and then returned two days later to lead UIW over Tarleton State with her season best 50 assists.
KVAPIL NAMED NATION’S BEST FOR THE WEEK -- posted Tuesday, October 14 2008
Senior outside Kim Kvapil is the AVCA national player of the week.
For the first time since Incarnate Word has been playing NCAA volleyball the school has had a player named the nation’s best for a seven-day period.
The American Volleyball Coaches Association said senior outside hitter Kim Kvapil turned in the top performance for all players in the NCAA’s Division II and thus has been declared the Sports Imports/AVCA Division II National Player of the Week.
For the time between October 6 and October 12, Kvapil was instrumental in Incarnate Word going 3-0 for the week including wins over its two nearest rivals in the Heartland Conference plus a victory over a highly-respected squad from Bentley University of Massachusetts.
In racking up double-doubles in all three matches—10-plus in both kills and digs—Kvapil for the week averaged 3.71 kills and 3.93 digs a set. Her hitting percentage was .275. Her key performance perhaps was against Dallas Baptist, at the time unbeaten in Heartland play and barking at the league-leading Cardinals heels. In that 3-1 triumph for UIW, the La Vernia product had match highs of 25 kills and 17 digs and hit at a solid .302 clip.
Over the same period of time, Kvapil was voted hitter of the week for the Heartland Conference.
Once before Incarnate Word has had a volleyball player receive a weekly honor at the national level. Back in 1997, when UIW was competing in the NAIA that organization selected outside hitter Shelly Snook as its national winner.
CARDINALS WIN OPENER AT NEWMAN -- posted Friday, September 19 2008
Senior outside Kim Kvapil led all hitters in the win at Newman.
CARDINALS WIN OPENER AT NEWMAN
25-10, 25-13, 27-25
Incarnate Word got its season mark to the break even mark but more importantly the Cardinals opened defense of their Heartland Conference title with a win at Newman in Kansas.
The victory in straight sets shoved UIW to 6-6 on the season and to 1-0 in conference play.
Senior outside Kim Kvapil paced the win with her 16 kills which were more than double any total posted by a Newman player. Her hitting percentage was an attention-getting .464 which also topped all players. Her support came from junior middle Edie Weise who recorded eight kills and a percentage of .389.
Next up for the Cardinals is another Heartland affair, this time at Oklahoma Panhandle on Saturday at 11 a.m. UIW after this trip will return to the McDermott Center on campus for another pair of conference matches. Texas A&M International comes in on September 26 followed by St. Edward’s on September 27.
