Three Major Awards Highlight Nine Total All-CCC Honors for Endicott

ENDICOTT ALL-CONFERENCE HISTORY | 2019 CCC ALL-CONFERENCE RELEASE

BEVERLY, Mass. - After leading the Endicott women's volleyball team to an undefeated record in conference play, seniors Zoey Gifford (Natick, Mass.) and Mackenzie Kennedy (Andover, Mass.) were named Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Co-Player of the Year and Libero of the Year, respectively, headlining nine total All-CCC honors for the Gulls. Head coach Tim Byram was named Coach of the Year for the fourth time in his time at Endicott during a season in which the Gulls have posted a record of 21-7 through regular season play. 

In addition to the three major conference awards, the Gulls earned three First Team and three Second Team honors as well.

CCC CO-PLAYER OF THE YEAR / ALL-CCC FIRST TEAM

Zoey Gifford | Sr. | S | Natick, Mass.

For the second time in her illustrious career, Gifford has been named Player of the Year, as she also earned the honor during the 2018 season. The Natick, Mass. native was also named to the All-CCC First Team for the third straight year, giving her all-conference honors in every year of her career as she garnered third team honors as a freshman. Gifford led the conference by a wide margin in assists per set, averaging 10.27/set in CCC play, to the next closest mark of 9.18/set, while guiding the Gulls to a .274 hitting percentage against conference opponents, well ahead of the next closest mark of .200. The senior also averaged 2.77 digs/set and .45 aces/set in CCC play, while leading Endicott to a perfect record in CCC play for the first time since 2016.

This is the fifth straight year that an Endicott women's volleyball member has earned Player of the Year honors (Gifford- 2018-2019, Mancini- 2017, McIntyre- 2015-2016).

CCC LIBERO OF THE YEAR / ALL-CCC FIRST TEAM

Mackenzie Kennedy | Sr. | L | Andover, Mass.

Joining Gifford with back-to-back major awards is senior libero Kennedy, who was named Libero of the Year for the second straight season. Following a regular season in which she eclipsed the 1,000 career dig total, and 500 digs in 2019 alone, Kennedy was chosen by the coaches as the top libero in the CCC, becoming the only two-time Libero of the Year in program history. The senior was named CCC Libero of the Week five times throughout the season, averaging 5.32 digs/set in CCC play, and a conference-best 5.53 digs/set overall. Kennedy has moved up the career digs charts at Endicott as she currently sits seventh in program history with 1,437 digs. Her Libero of the Year and All-CCC First Team nods came despite playing behind the conference's second-best block, as she anchored an Endicott defense that held opponents to a .154 hitting percentage on the season. 

This is the fourth Libero of the Year honor in Endicott women's volleyball history (Kennedy 2018-2019, Norley- 2012, Nolan- 2008).

ALL-CCC FIRST TEAM

Remi Quesnelle | Sr. | OH | Sunderland, Mass.

After a standout senior season in which she has developed into one of the top offensive options for the Gulls, Remi Quesnelle was named to the All-CCC First Team for the first time in her career. Quesnelle posted career-best marks in kills (.263), kills/set (2.83), aces (44), aces/set (.47), points (315.5) and points/set (3.4), leading the Gulls to a 21-7 record during the regular season and the top seed in the upcoming CCC Tournament. In CCC play, Quesnelle finished fourth overall (min. 50 attempts) in hitting percentage, hitting an even .300 for the year, while finishing third overall in kills/set with 3.17. Against the four-highest teams in the Tournament seedings (No. 2 Roger Williams, No. 3 Wentworth, No. 4 Salve Regina and No. 5 UNE) Quesnelle was at her best, hitting .373, averaging 3.75 kills/set, and picking up 2.08 digs/set. Over those 12 sets of play, Quesnelle committed just seven hitting errors to her 45 kills.

ALL-CCC SECOND TEAM

Amanda Gilbert | So. | OH | Hopkinton, Mass.

One year after earning Third Team honors as a freshman, Amanda Gilbert was named to the All-CCC Second Team as a sophomore. Gilbert finished tied for seventh overall in CCC play with her 2.86 kills/set (min. 50 attempts), while her average of .269 was good for 11th overall. Gilbert's season high of 15 kills came on a night in which she hit .464 (15-2-28) and added four digs in the team's 3-0 sweep of crosstown rival Gordon. Overall, Gilbert finished the regular season with 238 kills, averaging 2.53 kills/set, while also picking up 156 digs at 1.6/set, 36 total blocks, and 282 total points, all career-best marks. 

ALL-CCC SECOND TEAM

Colleen McAvoy | So. | MB | Coventry, Conn.

Coming off a season in which she was named AVCA New England Region Rookie of the Year and earned All-CCC Second Team honors, sophomore Colleen McAvoy repeated as a Second Team honoree. McAvoy battled through injuries mid-way through the year to finish hitting .325 overall, the top mark in the CCC. McAvoy set new career-high marks in kills (217), kills/set (2.49), hitting percentage (.325), aces (30), aces/set (.34), points (284), and points/set (3.3). McAvoy twice earned CCC Player of the Week honors in 2019 and helped guide the Gulls to a 3-0 sweep over then No. 14 ranked Christopher Newport as she hit .412 for the match.

ALL-CCC SECOND TEAM

Nicole Winkler | Jr. | MB | Southborough, Mass.

Remaining consistent with the trend, junior Nicole Winkler also posted a career-best season which resulted in her first All-CCC honor when she was named to the Second Team. The junior posted career-highs in kills (219), kills/set (2.23), hitting percentage (.302), solo blocks (11), assist blocks (62), total blocks (73), blocks/set (.74), points (264), and points/set (2.7). Winkler finished second in the league in hitting percentage overall with her .302 average, while her .74 blocks/set were good for sixth overall. The junior hit .400 or better in 12 of the 28 matches she played in, including a season-high .636 (8-1-11) in the 3-0 sweep of NESCAC foe Colby.

COACH OF THE YEAR

Tim Byram | 20th Season

Head coach Tim Byram has guided the Gulls to a unblemished record in CCC play for the sixth time in his 20 years at the helm in 2019. As a result, Byram was named the CCC Coach of the Year for the fourth time in his career. The honor comes following a regular season in which he eclipsed the 400 win plateau as the head coach at Endicott. That mark came when the Gulls knocked off Western New England 3-0 on Saturday to wrap up the regular season with a 21-7 record overall. Endicott has now reached the 20-win plateau 11 times with Byram at the helm, including in four of the last five seasons. 

WHAT'S NEXT

The top-seeded Gulls will host the winner of No. 4 Salve Regina and No. 5 University of New England on Thursday, November 7.

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(Photo Credit - David Le '10)