Follow
A freshman who helped his team pull off its biggest win in program history is now earning a national award for the first time in his college career.
Off the Block announced Monday that St. Francis libero Gabe Woffindin was selected as the Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Freshman of the Week.
Woffindin had a match-high 12 digs as St. Francis upset No. 6/6 Penn State in four games on Friday for the program’s first all-time victory against the Nittany Lions. He also had a season-high 16 digs and his first kill of the season in a four-game non-conference victory against Alderson Broaddus on Saturday.
This is the first time in the three-year history of the award that a St. Francis player has been named the National Freshman of the Week.
The Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Freshman of the Week is presented each week during the regular season to the NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball freshman who had the most outstanding performance. The winner is announced every Monday during the regular season on the Off the Block website, offtheblockblog.com.
Each of the four NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball conferences have an opportunity each week to nominate one player for the National Freshman of the Week. In addition, fans and teams can nominate a player for the National Freshman of the Week by tweeting their nominee to the official Twitter account of Off the Block, @offtheblock11.
Off the Block is a website that started in January 2011 and has become among the national leaders in college men’s volleyball coverage.
Springbak, Inc. is the official sponsor of the 2016 Freshmen All-American Team and National Freshman of the Week and produces high performance footwear used by professional athletes from the NFL, NBA, MLB and U.S. Olympic teams and the top college teams in the nation.
Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Freshman of the Week honorable mentions
Mitch Perinar, Lewis — Perinar had a match-high 18 kills on a .448 attack percentage in a sweep against Quincy on Friday. He also had eight kills as No. 13 Lewis swept Lindenwood on Saturday to clinch a berth in the MIVA Tournament.
Will Tischler, Loyola — Tischler had a season-high 10 kills in a four-game victory against Quincy on Saturday. He also had at least five kills and a .500 attack percentage in sweeps versus Princeton and Lindenwood last week.
Tevor Dow, Harvard — Dow finished with a team-high four blocks and added five kills on a .625 attack percentage in a four-game non-conference loss against No. 15 Cal Baptist on Monday.
Kekaulike Alameda, Barton — Alameda led all players with 12 digs to help Barton sweep first-place Erskine on Saturday. The libero also had a team-high 12 digs in a five-game non-conference loss to McKendree on Saturday.
Joao Victor Santos, Coker — Santos led all players with 15 kills on a .423 attack percentage and a season-high six aces in a sweep against Emmanuel on Saturday. He also had a match-high 18 kills in a four-game victory against North Greenville on Friday.
Dimitar Kalchev, CSUN — Kalchev finished with 17 kills along with a team-high 13 kills and two aces to help No. 11 CSUN upset No. 2/2 Long Beach State in five games on Saturday. He also had a team-high 13 kills in the home-and-home opener loss against Long Beach State on Friday.
Sam Porter, CSUN — Porter guided the offense to a .305 attack percentage and added two aces in a five-game upset victory against No. 2/2 Long Beach State on Saturday.
Kyle Ensing, Long Beach State — Ensing had a team-high nine digs and added eight kills with zero attack errors in a sweep against No. 11 CSUN on Friday. The outside attacker also had a team-high 14 kills and 13 digs in a five-game loss to CSUN on Saturday.
David Wieczorek, Pepperdine — Wieczorek finished with 18 kills on a .448 attack percentage and added four blocks to help No. 8/7 Pepperdine upset No. 1/1 BYU in four games on Saturday. He also had six kills on a .385 attack percentage in the series-opening loss to BYU on Friday.
Arturo Iglesias, Cal Baptist — Iglesias had a match-high 49 assists and guided the offense to a .389 attack percentage as No. 15 Cal Baptist defeated Harvard in four games on Monday.