BATON ROUGE — LSU junior Ivana Kuzmic earned honorable mention All-South Region honors as announced by the America Volleyball Coaches Association on Tuesday.
The All-South Region team consisted of 12 players, nine from the Southeastern Conference, with six honorable mention selections. Members of the eight all-region teams are now qualified for All-America honors, which will be presented on Dec. 15.
The Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 20, Kuzmic ranks 15th in the NCAA in blocks per game this season and recorded the third most single-season blocks per game in LSU history with a 1.59 average. The middle blocker posted four matches with double-figure block totals, becoming the first player at LSU to accomplish that feat since 1986.
In addition, the Split, Croatia, native, leads the team and ranks 10th in the SEC in hitting percentage, while ranking fourth on the team in kills per game. Along with a pair of double-doubles, she recorded over 10 kills in 16 matches on the season. She now needs just 104 kills to record the 1,000 kill of her career.
Against Ole Miss earlier in the year, she recorded the seventh most blocks assists in a five-game match in LSU history with 11. In the season finale against Houston, Kuzmic recorded a season-best 14 blocks on her way to earning SEC/C-USA Challenge All-Tournament honors. The 14 blocks ranks sixth most in school history in a five-game match. In addition, she recorded six block solos, which is the second most for a five-game match in the program’s history.
A member of the Hurricane Frances Invitational and Texas Invitational All-Tournament teams earlier in the season, Kuzmic is the first LSU player to earn All-South region honors since Jennifer Hampton was an honorable mention selection to the all-region team in 2002 as an outside hitter.
AVCA All-South Region Selections
Stevi Adams New Mexico State University OH Sr.
Iana Andonova Florida Atlantic University MB Jr.
Kristen Andre University of Tennessee MB Jr.
Michelle Chatman University of Florida MB Sr.
Jane Collymore ** University of Florida OH Jr.
Erin Heffner ** University of Alabama OH Sr.
Julie Knytych University of Tennessee S Jr.
Amy Morris University of Tennessee OH Jr.
Alexandra Oquendo University of Georgia MB Jr.
Stefanie Panzer Appalachian State University MB Jr.
Michelle Piantadosi University of Tennessee OH Sr.
Sherri Williams ** University of Florida MB Sr.
Region Freshman of the Year: Yuliya Stoyanova, Tennessee, RS/Opp
Honorable Mention: Kaycie Carr (Charleston, S, Jr.), Ivana Kuzmic (LSU, MB, Jr.), Julie Petruschke (Georgia, OH, Jr.), Yuliya Stoyanova (Tennessee, RS/Opp, Fr.), Giedre Tarnauskaite (Arkansas State, OH, Sr.), Margot Wallace (Georgia, S, Sr.)