Four Lady Saints earn All-Conference awards and Frugoli named Coach of the Year
By: Kenny Hernandez
LIBERAL, Kan. - The Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference (KJCCC) and Region VI announced the all-conference teams. The Lady Saints have four student-athletes recognized with Head Coach Geno Frugoli named KJCCC Coach of the Year. Seyun Park is named the most valuable player in the KJCCC and named to the all-conference first team for the third straight season. Sarah Cruz was named to the KJCCC first-team all-conference for the second straight season for the former freshman of the year. Freshman Rafaela DaSilva was named to the first team all-conference, and sophomore transfer Aubreigh Haxton was named honorable mention in the conference.
Seyun Park, the conference MVP, led the Lady Saints with 306 kills and is fourth in the NJCAA with a .373 hitting percentage. Park has competed for the Lady Saints in the last three seasons and has appeared in 86 matches, with 780 kills and a .347%. Park had her best season performance in the Region VI championship match against Butler, with 20 kills and a .405 hitting percentage. Park is a third-year sophomore due to Covid year exemptions and is the first player in school history to earn first-team all-conference honors.
Sarah Cruz was named to the first-team all-conference in the KJCCC for the second consecutive year. During the 2022 season, Cruz had 248 kills, 103 digs, and a .264 hitting percentage. Cruz is 27th in the NJCAA, with an average of 3.38 kills per set. This is her second season with the program and last year was the KJCCC freshman of the year. Cruz had her best match of the season on August 27th at Ranger College with 16 kills, a .356%, and 12 digs in the victory.
Rafaela DaSilva earns all-conference first-team membership in her freshman campaign. DaSilva, the setter in the 5-1 Frugoli offense, has 1,185 assists this season, 305 digs, and 42 blocks for the Lady Saints. DaSilva's best match of the season occurred on September 10th in LAs Vegas, Nevada, with a fifth-set victory over Arizona Western as she tallied 48 assists in the contest.
Aubreigh Haxton, a transfer sophomore, has been named to the all-conference honorable mention team. Haxton is a left-handed outside hitter from Argonia, Kansas has 191 kills, 53 blocks, and 29 digs this season. Haxton has competed in 35 of the 36 matches this season and had her best match on September 14th versus Otero College with 20 kills and a .405 hitting percentage.
The Lady Saints' Head Coach Geno Frugoli was named the 2022 KJCCC and Region VI coach of the year as he led Seward County to a 30-6 overall record and a 14-2 conference record. This is the second time Frugoli has been presented with this award during his three years with the program. This past weekend Frugoli led the Lady Saints to a Region VI and Plains District Championship to punch their ticket to the NJCAA National Tournament in West Plains, Missouri.
Follow the links below for the complete KJCCC release and the full list of recipients.