Following another 3-0 weekend featuring several key performances for the Radford University volleyball team, senior Haley Kleespies has been named Big South Player of the Week and freshman Grace Green has been named Big South Freshman of the Week, the conference office announced Monday afternoon.
With the award Kleespies has now completed the trifecta by winning Freshman of the Week (2015), Defensive Player of the Week (2017) and Player of the Week (2018) in her illustrious career. Green is just getting her career started, but has already won two awards after garnering Defensive Player of the Week honors on August 27.
Kleespies was incredible at the Valley Forge Sports Invitational this weekend, leading the Highlanders to a 3-0 record and earning a spot on the All-Tournament team as MVP. She finished the three-game tourney with 113 assists and became the all-time leader for career assists in program history with 3,707. In Radford’s 3-1 victory over Lehigh, Kleespies also became the first Highlander since 2010 to record a triple-double with 45 assists, 12 digs and 10 kills. She now ranks second in the Big South for both assists per set (9.21) and service aces per set (0.61).
“Haley had a huge weekend – not only did she break the assist record, but she recorded her first triple-double and led us to a 3-0 record,” said head coach Marci Byers. “She is very deserving of this weekly honor!”
Green continues to provide consistency at the libero position for the Highlanders this season. The freshman was named to the All-Tournament team, finishing the weekend with 48 digs and three service aces to help Radford win all three matches in Philly. She also recorded her first career double-double with 17 digs and 10 assists in the win over Lehigh.
“Grace continues to improve each week and is doing a solid job for us,” noted Byers. “I’m glad the conference office has recognized her for the second time already this season!”
The Highlanders now stand at 8-1 on the season thanks to a five-game winning streak dating back to Aug. 31. They return to the court on Friday, Sept. 14 to begin the George Mason Classic in Fairfax.
