Sarah Claborn named NAIA Volleyball All-American
By: David Toelle, KWU Sports Information

Claborn, pictured here against Tabor on October 16, becomes KWU's first-ever NAIA Volleyball All-American

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kansas Wesleyan’s Sarah Claborn has been selected as a NAIA Volleyball All-American as voted on by the NAIA Volleyball All-American Selection Committee. It marks the first time in history that a KWU volleyball player has earned an NAIA All-American nod.

Claborn, a 5-9 junior outside hitter from Aurora, Colo., is in her first season with the Coyotes, and made an immediate impact upon stepping on the floor.

Claborn led the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference in points per game, averaging 5.85 points per game during the season. She led the KCAC in kills per game, was ranked fifth in hitting percentage, eighth in aces per game and 11th in the conference in digs per game.

“This honor for Sarah is well deserved,” KWU head coach Shawn Taylor said. “It reflected what she did this season, and reflected the success we had as a team this season.”

Her 5.03 kills per game, not only led the KCAC, but led NAIA Region IV, and was seventh best in the entire NAIA in 2007.

During the 2007 season, Claborn was named KCAC Player of the Week five times and NAIA Region IV Player of the Week four times. She was named First Team All-KCAC, and selected as the 2007 KCAC Player of the Year – a unanimous decision by the coaches of the conference and continued on to be named First Team All-Region in NAIA Region IV.

Kansas Wesleyan finished the 2007 campaign with one of the best records in school history at 27-8 overall. The Coyotes won their first KCAC Regular Season Championship since the 1998 season, and its first KCAC Tournament Title since 1997 in convincing fashion.

KWU then advanced on to the NAIA Region IV Tournament and became the first-ever KCAC team to advance past the first round of the regional tournament when the Coyotes knocked off Peru State, before bowing out to eventual national tournament qualifier Bellevue (Neb.), in the semifinals.

-- KWU SI --