University of Minnesota Athletics
Dixon and Wittman Named Mideast All-Region
12/6/2011 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Dec. 6, 2011
Sophomores Tori Dixon and Ashley Wittman were both named to the Mideast All-Region team according to an announcement by the America Volleyball Coaches Association on Tuesday, Dec. 6. Wittman was named an honorable mention as a freshman and marks Dixon's first career honor. The all-region honors follow All-Big Ten selections for the duo, announced prior to the NCAA post season. Dixon and Wittman's honors mark the 14th-straight year the Gophers have had an all-region honoree.
Dixon enters the NCAA Regionals ranks fourth in the conference in hitting percentage (.349). She also ranks second on the team in kills (330), points (419) and blocks (103). Leading the team with 37 aces, Dixon ranks sixth overall in the Big Ten. To open her sophomore season, Dixon hit .410 and had a career-high 22 kills against Southern Cal. In the Texas matches, Dixon had 21 kills and eight aces and hit over .444 in both matches, while posting a career-best .667 against Illinois (10/29) and Wisconsin (11/23). An all-tournament selection at Northern Iowa, she had seven blocks and nine kills. Dixon was also named to the Preseason All-Big Ten after she received All-Big Ten honorable mention as a rookie.
Ranked second in the Big Ten kill category, Wittman has 541 kills and averages 4.51 per set for points (592.0). A six-rotation player, Wittman has seen action in all 120 sets and also has 331 digs, which ranked third on the team as does her 58 blocks. Also named a Preseason All-Big Ten, Wittman was named a two-time Big Ten Player of the Week. Over the course of the non-conference tournaments, Wittman was a three-time All-Tournament selection, including the Most Valuable Player for the Northern Iowa Tournament and the Marquette Challenge. Following the Penn State and Ohio State weekend, Wittman achieved weekly conference honors when she had 52 kills, including a career-high 31 against Penn State.
Dixon, Wittman and the rest of the Golden Gophers host the Iowa State Cyclones in the NCAA Regional Semifinal on Friday at 7 p.m., or following the 5 p.m. match against Purdue and Florida State. Both semifinals can be seen on ESPN3. The winner of each match moves on to the NCAA Regional Final, set for 8:30 p.m. and will be televised on ESPNU.
Mideast All-Region Team
| Michelle Bartsch** | University of Illinois | OH | SR |
| Tori Dixon | University of Minnesota | MB | SO |
| Tiffany Fisher | Purdue University | MB | SR |
| Kristin Hoffman | Northern Illinois University | S | SR |
| Mari Hole | The Ohio State University | OH | JR |
| Gina Mancuso | University of Nebraska | OH | JR |
| Deja McClendon** | Penn State University | OH | SO |
| Jenilee Rathje | Michigan State University | OH | SR |
| Ariel Scott | Penn State University | RS | SO |
| Katie Slay | Penn State University | MB | SO |
| Ariel Turner | Purdue University | OH | JR |
| Colleen Ward | University of Illinois | OH | SR |
| Lauren Wicinski** | Northern Illinois University | OH | SO |
| Ashley Wittman | University of Minnesota | OH | SO |
Region Freshman of the Year: Micha Hancock, Penn State, S
Honorable Mention: Morgan Broekhuis (Nebraska, RS, So.), Lauren Cook (Nebraska, S, Jr.), Emily Danks (Ohio State, RS, Jr.), Rachel Davis, (Purdue, S, So.), Stephanie Holthus (Northwestern, OH, So.), Hannah Werth (Nebraska, OH, Jr.)
