SPARTANBURG, S.C. - Freshman libero Paula Passmore from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga was named to the Southern Conference All-Freshman Team the conference announced Thursday.
The Merritt Island, Fla., native paced the SoCon the entire season in digs per set finishing with a 5.41 average and ranked 13th nationally in that category. She had been ranked as high as fifth and dug up a total of 546 attacks over the Lady Mocs 29-match season.
The coaches knew after Passmore recorded 33 digs in her season debut against East Tennessee State at Morehead, Ky., that the freshman was more than a capable replacement for Laura Newberry. Newberry finished her career at Chattanooga as the NCAA all-time digs leader.
Passmore continued to provide Chattanooga with solid defense the entire season hitting the 30-dig plateau five times. Against Austin Peay, Passmore registered 33 digs in a three-set match, an amazing 11 dig per set average.
With 34 digs against Elon, the freshman set a season-high in digs and the Lady Mocs as a team dug up 122 attacks in a five-set loss.
Chattanooga welcomed nine new players and finished its season with a 12-17 record after starting off 8-3, the best start for the squad since 1999. The young squad struggled in SoCon play ending the season with a 4-12 mark.
