COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- Kaepa and the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) are pleased to announce that Ivan Contreras of Penn State University has been selected as the 1997 Player of the Year for men's volleyball. Contreras, a senior opposite hitter, is a four time All-American, a feat only matched by fellow honoree Matt Fuerbringer of Stanford.
Contreras, who hails from Tampico, Mexico, has led Penn State to the national semifinals match the last four years, and was a freshman when the Nittany Lions claimed the title in 1994. In his four seasons as a starter, the Wildcats have posted a 102-14 overall record.
This season, Contreras has recorded 597 kills, 169 digs, 70 blocks, and a .400 hitting percentage. The inaugural Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Player of the Year, he was named MVP of the Nittany Lion Invitational and the Golden Dome Classic. Contreras recorded a career high 51 kills in the EIVA tournament championship against Princeton. Contreras has earned AVCA National Player of the Week honors on four occasions, more than any other student-athlete in any division.
Penn State head coach Mark Pavlik, behind the tremendous skills of Contreras, has led the Nittany Lions into the NCAA Championships for the seventh straight year.
"I think his athletic ability speaks for itself on the court," Pavlik said. "Not only does he raise his level of play in big matches, but he brings everyone else around him up as well."
This marks the first time a player from a non-West Coast school has earned the Player of the Year honor.
Contreras maintains a 3.3 GPA in electrical engineering
The announcement and formal presentation of awards for the 1997 Kaepa/
AVCA Men's All America teams and the Kaepa/AVCA Men's Player of the Year
will be made tonight at the NCAA Men's Championship Banquet at the Holiday
Inn on the Lane in Columbus, Ohio.
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