BATON ROUGE — LSU volleyball player Kassi Mikulik was named the Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Week, it was announced by the league office on Monday.
The Flatonia, Texas, native led the Tigers to a 2-0 record for the week with 3-0 wins over Kentucky and No. 25 Tennessee to take over sole possession of first place in the SEC Western Division, two games ahead of Alabama, and a game behind Florida in the overall SEC race.
In the weekend opener against the Wildcats, Mikulik posted 12 digs in the three-game sweep. It marked her 20th double-figure dig total of the season. In addition, she helped lead the team to a .302 hitting percentage offensively with her outstanding passing on serve receive.
Two days later against No. 25 Tennessee, she led the team with 22 digs, which is tied for the sixth most digs in a three-game match in LSU history. She has now recorded double-figure dig performances in all 21 matches this season for the Tigers. She is just three digs away from moving into fifth place in career digs in LSU history and only 40 digs from breaking into the top 10 in single-season digs, with 10 regular season matches remaining.
For the week, she averaged 5.67 digs per game with 34 digs and six assists. As the primary serve receiver, the converted outside hitter committed just one reception error in 68 attempts for the week for a .986 percentage. For the season, she has only committed 15 reception errors in 572 attempts for a .974 percentage. In addition, she posted three service aces and has 18 aces on the season, which ranks second on the team.
This is the second SEC Defensive Player of the Week honor for Mikulik in her career and the second of the season for the Tigers. The team has now earned five SEC weekly honors.
The Tigers will be on the road next weekend to take on Georgia and South Carolina. LSU swept both teams in Baton Rouge earlier this season. The Tigers will take on Georgia next Friday at 6 p.m. (CT) before traveling to face the Gamecocks on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. (CT).
LSU will return home again on Nov. 3 to face nationally ranked Florida at 7 p.m. The Tigers fell to the Gators last weekend in Gainesville, one of only two losses for LSU in SEC play this season. The Tigers will then take on Auburn on Nov. 5 at 1:30 p.m.