2006 LMU
VOLLEYBALL
2005 all-wcc first-team
HEATHER HUGHES “Our returning MVP, Heather is a player who can do everything well.”
JUMPING JUNIOR: Hughes returns to lead the Lions to a fourth straight NCAA appearance.
A Loyola Marymount University volleyball player took home the honor of LMU Female Athlete of the Year a second straight year, as Heather Hughes earned the selection last April. The achievement was especially significant for Hughes, who earned LMU Athletics' highest annual honor after just her sophomore season. “Our returning MVP, Heather is a player who can do everything well,” LMU Head Coach Steve Stratos said. He is right. Over her two seasons with the program, Lion fans have seen Hughes do a little of everything - and do it well. She earned honorable mention All-West Coast Conference recognition as a freshman after playing opposite. There, she ranked second on
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the team in kills per game with 2.95 and led the team in service aces with 42. One of the team's primary passers, she tallied 277 digs. But during her sophomore season, Stratos and the Lions asked even more of the Fallbrook, Calif. native. She was to have a hand in the setting duties as well. Splitting her time between setting and playing opposite, Hughes continued to impress. She still tallied 370 kills, to go along with her 472 assists. She was the only player in the West Coast Conference last season to tally a statistical triple-double, and she did it five times. Hughes and teammate Christianna Reneau led the conference in double-doubles, with 18 each. Her 2005 efforts earned her a first-team All-WCC selection.
With the roster ready for the 2006 season, Stratos and the Lions are hoping to get Hughes back to her opposite position and let her work there full-time. But if not, Hughes' all-around play can help the Lions anywhere they need it most. “Heather is another one of those individuals who, although we see her starting as an opposite, could easily end up as a left side hitter.,” Stratos said. “She's done a great deal of setting for us as well.”