Nov. 21, 2003

SOUTH BEND, IND. - Junior middle blocker Kerri Sullivan was named to the All-BIG EAST Second Team at the BIG EAST awards banquet on Friday night. Less than a week after recording her 1,000th career kill, Sullivan was honored with her first conference award.

Sullivan has registered 355 kills in 99 games this season and has reached double digits in kills 18 times this season. She posted a season-high 31 kills against Manhattan. Sullivan leads the squad with an average of 3.59 kills per game and owns a team-best .243 hitting percentage. She also ranks second on the Wildcats with 62 total blocks.

The BIG EAST also announced the major award winers, with Pittsburgh's Wendy Hatlestad earning Player of the Year honors and Megan McGrane capturing Libero of the Year. Katherine Whitney of Seton Hall took home Rookie of the Year, while Notre Dame's Debbie Brown and Pittsburgh's Chris Beerman were chosen as Co-Coaches of the Year.

Pittsburgh and Notre Dame each placed four student-athletes on the three All-BIG EAST teams, while Virginia Tech earned three honors.

Villanova will meet top-seeded Pittsburgh in the BIG EAST Tournament semifinals on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Notre Dame.