PacWest Weekly Awards (Sept. 27)

IRVINE, Calif. – A breakout 31-dig performance from freshman libero Elena Torres in Academy of Art volleyball's first Pacific West Conference victory of the year led her to be named PacWest Defender of the Week. Not only did the effort break the ART U program record for digs in a three-set match, but it also ranked among the top two in PacWest history. The award is for matches played from Sept. 20-26.

In a Sept. 22 sweep of Fresno Pacific that saw the program's highest dig total ever in a three-set match (84) and one that Head Coach Allen McCreary called "one of our best defensive games ever as a team," Torres collected a match-high 31 digs. The effort, highlighted by 13 digs in the third set alone, marked her season-high by eight digs and vaulted the Fashion major to first among the program's top three-set match performances, eclipsing Leinani Keanini's previous record of 22 which had stood since 2010.

Compared to PacWest three-set individual dig totals historically, Torres' 31 tied her for second overall with FPU's Hannah Butler (2012, 2015) behind 37 from Hawaii Pacific's Tricia Yoshimura (2008). On the year, Torres has now risen to ninth in the PacWest with an average of 4.18 digs per set.

This is the first PacWest weekly honor for Academy of Art volleyball this season as well as the first in Torres' career.