Norton earns fourth Freshman of the Week

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – University of Arkansas outside hitter Jasmine Norton was named the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week when league honors were announced Monday. Norton turned in a pair of double-double performance this past weekend in matches against then-No. 12 Kentucky and Tennessee. She becomes the third player since the inception of the award to garner four honors in one season.Against the Wildcats, Norton had 19 kills and 13 digs. Her kill total against UK is the highest for Norton against a ranked team this season. In the weekend finale, she tallied 22 kills at a .360 hitting efficiency. She added a team-high 14 dig. She also had two service aces and four total blocks, one off her career high. Norton’s performance against the Lady Vols was her seventh match this season with at least 20 kills."It was definitely exciting to see Jasmine perform at such a high level against two very good teams," head coach Robert Pulliza said. "She has consistently put up big offensive numbers for us this season, but her dig totals were also impressive this weekend. To lead us in digs (against Tennessee) is the most exciting thing about her play this weekend."Norton has posted double-digit kills in ten consecutive matches and now has eight double-double efforts this season. For the week, the Rowlett, Texas, native averaged 4.56 kills per set, 3.00 digs per set and 5.11 points per set. This season, Norton leads the Razorbacks and is third in the SEC with 3.92 kills per set. She is also sixth in the league with 0.29 aces per set and second on the team with 180 digs. Norton has elevated her play during league matches where she has upped her production to 4.33 kills per set, the second-best mark in conference-only matches."Her maturity level has really grown and it has shown in her preparation for matches," Pulliza said. "When things are going good, she doesn’t get too high, or when things aren’t going well, she doesn’t get too low. She stays steady and keeps on working, so her maturity is what really stands out for me."Arkansas returns to the court Nov. 8 for a matchup with No. 19 LSU. The match will be televised by CSS with a 1 p.m. (CT) first serve at Barnhill Arena. Log on to ArkansasRazorbacks.com for more information.