RIVERDALE, N.Y. – After an outstanding 2008 campaign, Manhattan College senior outside hitter Sherryta Stokes (Beltsville, Md.) has been honored by the MAAC’s 10 head coaches with a selection to the All-MAAC First Team, it was announced Saturday evening in Albany, N.Y., site of this weekend’s MAAC Championships. This is the second All-MAAC selection of Stokes’ career. She was an All-MAAC Second Team choice in 2006. She is the first Manhattan player to earn first team recognition since Maggie Pfeifer was named Offensive Player of the Year in 2005.
Stokes finished second in the MAAC in both kills (3.69 kps) and points (4.10 pps), leading the Lady Jaspers in each category. She also ranked ninth in the conference in hitting percentage (.247) and placed third on the squad with 2.83 digs per set. Stokes slammed a career-best 387 kills this season and pounded the 1,000th kill of her career in her final home match against Saint Peter’s on Nov. 15. She earned MAAC Co-Offensive Player of the Week honors on Oct. 13 and recorded 18 double-doubles in 28 matches. Stokes reached double-figures in kills 23 times, including a career-high 26 in the thrilling five-set win over Iona on Nov. 1.
She was joined on the All-MAAC First Team by Siena’s Burgandy McCurty and April London, Iona’s Allison Nieters and Sarah Wiener, and Fairfield’s Katie Mann. McCurty earned Offensive Player of the Year honors for the second straight season and London was named Setter of the Year. In addition to being named Defensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive season, Nieters was named Libero of the Year. Cathy Hummel of Canisius was selected as Coach of the Year, while Iona’s Rachelle Wilson and Niagara’s Michelle James shared the Rookie of the Year award.
The All-MAAC Second Team consisted of Morgan Ammons and Michelle Godfrey of Canisius, Fairfield’s Alex Lopez and Karlie Urbaniak, Marist’s Joanna Foss and Alexandra Schultze, and Kelly Hummel of Siena.
In addition, a league-high seven Lady Jaspers were named to the MAAC All-Academic Team. Seniors Alyssa Getzel (Richmond, Va.) and Andrea Reiff (Hawthorne, N.Y.) each earned All-Academic honors for the third straight year, while junior Rita Welsh (Collegeville, Pa.) was named to the All-Academic squad for the second time. Sophomores Jen Haggerty (Springfield, Pa.), Lindsay Haley (Middletown, N.Y.), Katie Kerbstat (Saddle River, N.J.) and Diane Strutner (San Jose, Calif.) all achieved All-Academic status in their first year eligible for the team. In order to qualify, a student-athlete must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.20 on a 4.0 scale and have completed two semesters at their school.
The Lady Jaspers finished fifth in the MAAC with a 10-8 conference record (11-17 overall) and set a school record for conference wins. Manhattan, which doubled last season’s conference win total, earned its highest finish in the MAAC since taking fourth place in 2006.
