HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – SWOSU Volleyball had a specialty winner and saw three land on All-Great American Conference teams, announced at Wednesday's awards banquet preceding the GAC Tournament.
2023 All-GAC Teams (pdf)
Jada Permenter was named the Freshman of the Year, becoming SWOSU's third rookie to earn the honor since 2011. She was also an honorable mention all-conference selection. For a second consecutive year, Lacy Mott picked up first team honors and Zoey Sparks landed on the second team.
Academically, SWOSU had three named GAC Distinguished Scholar-Athletes – Maicee Morgan, Lauren DeSantiago, and Keke Holloway – awarded to championship qualifying competitors with a cumulative GPA or 3.70 or higher and at least 70 credit hours.
Permenter (Amarillo, Texas) was a two-time conference player of the week this season and finished fifth in the conference with 4.51 digs per set. She set a season high of 31 digs against East Central back on September 19. She joins teammate Maicee Morgan (2019) as current Bulldogs to garner Freshman of the Year honors.
Mott (Waxahachie, Texas) was a three-time player of the week, twice on offense and once on defense, and was sixth throughout the GAC this season in kills per set at 3.39. Just like Permenter, her standout game also came against ECU when she posted a 26 kill, 20 dig double-double on a .382 hitting percentage. She's the third player in program history to earn first team honors twice in a career.
Sparks (Canyon, Texas) leads the GAC with 1.22 blocks per set (131 total) and is 13th nationally. She had a season high 12 kills against Southern Nazarene on September 28 and a career high 13 blocks against Fort Lewis on Sept. 9 which ties for the most single-game blocks in 2023 of any player around the conference.
In the 13-year history of the Great American Conference, SWOSU has now had 38 individuals garner All-GAC awards and 17 earn the Distinguished Scholar Athlete distinction.
The season continues tomorrow morning at 10:00 a.m. when the Bulldogs take on East Central in the quarterfinals of the GAC Tournament.
