Nov. 7, 2007
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - West Florida setter Madeline Gonzalez (Jr., 5-7, Bayamon, Puerto Rico) was the Gulf South Conference East Division Offensive Player of the Week for the past week. This is the second award for the junior setter this season. Gonzalez did it all this past weekend, pushing her team to an undefeated record in conference play. She had 66 assists during the two weekend matches, including 42 in a 3-0 win over West Alabama. She also hit .316 on for UWF over the two matches.
West Florida outside hitter Luciana Rapach (Jr., 5-9, Porto Alegre, Brazil) was named the Gulf South Conference East Division Defensive Player of the Week. She was all over the court for the Argonauts, posting impressive dig and block numbers. She had 25 digs in the two matches, averaging 4.17 digs per game. The junior also made her presence felt at the net, contributing 13 blocks during the two matches. That 1.17 block per game average helped clinch the top spot in the East for UWF in this weekend's GSC Tournament. This was her third defensive player of the week honor this season, despite the fact that she plays an offensive position. The versatility of Rapach is a big reason for the Argonauts setting a team record of 30 wins so far this season.
The Argonauts have been honored with 11 of the 22 weekly awards this season, with seven different players receiving the award. Rapach and Gonzalez account for five of the awards, while Isabela Gualberto (Sr. / Brazil) and Danielle Spitzer (Sr. / Birmingham) have previously won offensive player of the week awards. The Argonauts have three other individuals that have won the defensive player of the week honors, which includes Freshmen Chelsea Wilhoite (Jacksonville, Fla.) and Junior Libero Jerica Carter (Gainesville, Fla.). The other defensive player of the week, Kimberly Clark (Jr. / St. Petersburg, Fla.) has the unique honor of being the only player in the league that has won both the defensive player of the week and the offensive player of the week. Clark was the defensive player of the week following a five game match victory over West Georgia, in which she had several key blocks and some spectacular digs in the win. Then, just a couple weeks later, Clark was the offensive GSC recipient after she single-handedly out hit the entire Pittsburg State team in the final game of the upset win over the #11 Gorillas.
