Valle, Dirrigl Earn AVCA All-Region Honors
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.- Razorback volleyball players Okiana Valle and Hailey Dirrigl earned all-region honors Tuesday afternoon, as announced by the AVCA. Valle was named to the AVCA All-South Region Team, while Dirrigl earned an honorable mention nod.
Arkansas now has at least one all-region performer in eight-consecutive seasons. Dirrigl and Valle are now eligible for AVCA All-America consideration.
The award is Valle’s second honor from the AVCA, with the libero being named All-South Region Freshman of the Year in 2015. The Barceloneta, Puerto Rico native is the first libero to earn all-region honors since 2013, and is the 13th Razorback to earn multiple AVCA honors.
Valle ended her career in cardinal and white with the second-most career digs in program history, recording 1,857 in 443 sets. Her 546 digs this season led the SEC and her 5.30 digs/set rank 28thin the NCAA. Valle’s 33 digs at Alabama in the season finale set a career-high for digs in a match and tied for second-most in program history.
She is just the fourth Razorback to reach at least 500 digs in a season and the first to do so since 2013. The senior is the only athlete in program history to average at least 5.0 digs per set in a season.
Dirrigl led the team with 321 kills this season, averaging 3.61 kills per set to come in at No. 7 in the SEC. The outside hitter has recorded 321 kills in both seasons on the court and registered a career-high 25 kills at Kansas in August.
The Phoenix, Ariz. native’s career-average of 3.13 kills per set are fifth in program history in the Rally to 25 era, and her 20 service aces this season are the second-most on the team. She recorded four double-doubles this season, tying Rachel Rippee to lead the Hogs.
This year’s SEC Scholar-Athlete, Dirrigl has the highest GPA on the team with a 3.91 as a biomedical engineering major.
“Both Okiana and Hailey have put in the time and made a significant commitment to upgrading their game,” head coach Jason Watson said. “As their coach, it’s been impressive seeing their resilience over the course of the season. I’m happy for both of them to receive this recognition.”
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