SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – University of Evansville volleyball players Rachel Tam and Alondra Vazquez earned All-Missouri Valley Conference accolades on Thursday in an announcement by the league.
 
Tam earned a spot on the All-MVC Second Team while Vazquez was recognized with All-Freshman Team accolades.
 
"These awards that Rachel and Alondra earned are the reflection of their mastery for learning," UE head coach Manolo Concepcion said.  "And that is what I am most impressed about. Congratulations to both!"
 
Rachel Tam was one of the top offensive players in the MVC and the NCAA as a whole.  She was second in the league with 4.21 kills per set and tallied a total of 492 on the season.  Tam was recognized on the MVC Scholar-Athlete Team earlier this week.  Her top contest came against Western Illinois as she registered 29 kills.  Tam was ranked in the top 33 in the nation in four statistics.  She finished the regular season ranked 11th in the nation with 492 total kills and 29th in the NCAA with her average per frame.  Her 538.5 total points on the season was 14th in the country while her 1,270 attempts was 33rd.
 
"This award is no accident or coincidence. It is the outcome of the commitment to excellence that she has shown. Since our end of the year meeting last year, there were personal goals established, that she worked on behind the scenes, to get to the point that she is today," Concepcion explained.  "I am really proud of her attention to detail and know that she will continue to aspire to get better. She has a team goal that she wants to help achieve before graduation, and that will continue to keep her hungry for more."
 
In her first season with the Purple Aces, Alondra Vazquez was third on the team in both kills (2.56/set) and digs (3.08/set).  She stepped up when it mattered most, putting forth her best match of the season last Friday as the Aces defeated UNI for just the second time.  Vazuqez recorded 25 kills and 25 digs on the game, both career-highs.
 
"It was an interesting year for this young player, as she started the fall without being able to train or play for most of the preseason due to illness. So the product that we saw during conference season is the result of her willingness and openness to learn while having to perform against the best of the best," Concepcion said about Vazquez.  "She was not only open to feedback from the staff, but also from players like Mildrelis (Rodriguez), who served as a mentor throughout this season. Once her teammates saw her unbelievable consistency and mental toughness, they put a lot of trust in her to help us get better. And she did. I am really looking forward to see what she continues to become, after she actually gets the opportunity to train and develop this coming spring."
 

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