• AVCA Division II All-Region Teams (.pdf)

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Nov. 24) – The three-time NCAA Atlantic Regional Champion California University of Pennsylvania volleyball team featured four players on the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-Atlantic Region team on Tuesday.

The Vulcans (36-5) landed senior middle hitter Ludmila Amaral (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Afonso Schimidt), sophomore middle hitter Bridge Bielich (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park), senior setter Renata da Silva (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Colegio Ateneu) and senior outside hitter Joanna Nist (Rockwood, Pa./Rockwood) on the all-region team. The quartet advances to the national ballot for AVCA All-America honors, which will be announced next week in conjunction with the 2009 NCAA Division II Championships.

da Silva collected her fourth AVCA All-Atlantic honor on Tuesday. The 5-8 setter leads the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) and ranks 11th in the country with 11.39 assists per game. She also averages 2.19 digs, 0.81 kill and 0.50 block per set.

Nist earned her all-region laurels after repeating for the third-straight year as the Daktronics Atlantic Region Player of the Year earlier today. The 5-10 senior leads the league and is among the national leaders with 3.89 kills per set. Nist, who also is the PSAC West Athlete of the Year, has registered 20 kill/dig double-doubles this season after also averaging 3.15 digs per set.

An AVCA All-American last year, Amaral ranks second on the team with 2.63 kills per set and .325 hitting percentage. She is among the PSAC leaders this season with 1.06 blocks per set and also averages 1.02 digs per set.

Bielich, a two-time PSAC West Second-Team selection, leads Cal U and is third in the league with a .345 hitting percentage. The Bethel Park product also is third on the team with a career-high 332 kills and is second on the team with 70 blocks.

The Vulcans return to action on Thursday, Dec. 3, when they face No. 5 West Texas A&M in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament at the Gangelhoff Center in St. Paul, Minn. The match is scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m. EST.