[Volleyball] Lazar named KCAC Volleyball Player of the Year; Falcon trio earns All-KCAC honors

WICHITA, Kan. – Friends University senior middle hitter Sarah Lazar (SR/Rose Hill, Kan. ) has put the ultimate exclamation point on her historic senior season by being named the KCAC Volleyball Player of the Year, the league office announced today (Nov. 10). A first-team All-KCAC selection, Lazar is joined by second-team all-conference performers Cajia Crawford (SR/Wichita, Kan.) and Antonia Perier (SO/Bakersfield, Calif.).

"For Sarah, Cajia and Toni to be voted and recognized on the All-KCAC teams by fellow conference coaches is such an amazing recognition, and well deserved," said Friends volleyball head coach Martin Ayin. 

Lazar stood out as the dominant hitter of the league throughout the season, winning five KCAC Volleyball Attacker of the Week awards this season, including four consecutive weekly honors during a particularly dominant stretch (Oct. 3-Oct. 24).  She is tops in the KCAC in kills (472), kills per set (4.18) and hitting percentage (.369) while ranking second in the league in blocks per set (1.16).  Lazar's hitting percentage is also good for fourth in the NAIA.

A native of Rose Hill, Kan., Lazar became the Falcons' all-time kills (1357) and blocks (494) leader this season. 

"Our staff has been very fortunate to coach Sarah in her time here as a Falcon and we could not be more proud of her being voted as KCAC Player of the Year!" said Ayin, who has now coached two KCAC Players of the Year during his 19-year tenure at Friends (Addie Peterson, 2010). 

In their second season with the program, Crawford and Perier have each played a critical part in the Falcons' success this year.

Providing the Falcons with a true 1-2 hitting duo, Crawford ranks second on the team and fourth in the KCAC with 368 kills and is also right behind Lazar in the conference at 3.54 kills per set. The Wichita native exploded for a career-high 28 kills to fuel the Falcons' comeback win at Avila (Oct. 19) and put in a team-leading 20 kills in a 3-0 victory Tuesday night (Nov. 8) over Sterling in the KCAC tournament first round.

Perier is pacing the KCAC in total digs (673) and is second in digs per set (6.06) on the season. A native of Bakersfield, Calif., Perier has recorded at least 30 digs in five different matches this season, including a season-best 42 digs on two occasions.

The Falcons are currently gearing up to face second-seeded Oklahoma Wesleyan University in the KCAC quarterfinal round tomorrow (Nov. 11) at 1:30 pm at the Hutchinson Sports Arena in Hutchinson, Kan.

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