Jan. 13, 2003
11/12/2002 - "MILIN NAMED PLAYER AND ROOKIE OF THE YEAR IN MEAC; RENS NAMED COACH OF THE YEAR"
GREENSBORO, NC- The University of Maryland Eastern Shore's (UMES) Freshman Outside Hitter and Setter, Jana Milin (Pula, Croatia), has been named the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference's (MEAC) Player and Rookie of the Year. Head Coach Toby Rens has also been named MEAC Coach of the Year.
Milin has been a dominating force all year for the Hawks (19-14, 7-3 MEAC) and has achieved national recognition on more than one occasion. She earned Rookie of the Week honors four times in the MEAC (double of any other player) and currently ranks first in the MEAC in service aces per game and kills per game. She has been ranked as high as fifth in the country in aces per game and eighteenth in kills per game. She has recorded seven triple doubles this season, a hard feat to accomplish in volleyball. One of those was a quadruple double, the only in the country this season and first in over a year in all of Division I. She has also been named to the American Volleyball Association's 30-kill club twice this season. Milin received 10 of a possible 20 votes for player of the year. She was followed in the voting by Fiorella Aita Junek of Florida A & M University.
Head Coach Toby Rens is in his second season with the Hawks. A program he came into to try and turnaround. He did just that. The Hawks went winless for three seasons before Rens notched three last season with mostly walk-ons and a few players that he did not recruit. This season he was able to recruit the kind of players to fit his system. These players fit in just fine recording 19 wins so far, the most in the history of the program. He also currently stands third in the MEAC with a 7-3 record, a big improvement from last year's eleventh place finish. He has coached at Tennessee Tech, George Washington, Northern Michigan, and Texas Tech before coming to UMES. He served as Head Coach at Northern Michigan and on an interim basis at Tennessee Tech. Including this season his career record stands at 80-49.
"I am so excited," said Milin. "This is a really big honor to me, it means so much." Coach Rens went on to add "I am really happy for Jana she truly deserved these awards, she has played tough all year and been a dominating force. She is a big part of the team's success. She helps the entire team play well." Rens was also grateful for his award, but more excited about his team. "I fell really privileged to receive this award. My peers voted on this award and that makes it special. However, my team deserves the award. They were the ones who worked hard everyday and made it a great season."
UMES will take the court on Friday at 12:30 PM in Baltimore when they are set to host Howard University in the MEAC Tournament. The Hawks are looking for their first ever conference championship and are in a good spot to get it by being seeded third.
2002 MEAC All-Conference 1st Team
Jana Milin UMES 5-10 OH Fr. Pula, Croatia
Andriena Ruiz FAMU 5-10 OH Fr. Lima, Peru
Tiffany Oliver MSU 6-2 MB Jr. Merced, CA
Steffani Eddins NCAT 6-1 MB Fr. Irving, TX
Tuamafa Reilly NCAT 5-10 S Sr. Killeen, TX
Fei Ye NCAT 5-10 UT Jr. Kirkland, WA
2002 MEAC All-Conference 2nd Team
Yolanda McGirt MSU OH Sr. San Diego, CA
Keiuana Boykin SCSU 5-9 OH Jr. Winton, CA
Giulianna Verlorio FAMU 6-2 MB Fr. Lima, Peru
Destiny Sisk MSU 5-11 MB Sr. Davenport, IA
Delisha Peterson FAMU 5-7 S Jr. Hoover, Ala.
Crystal Amedee Howard 5-9 UT So. Columbia, SC
Anisha Nicholson FAMU 5-10 UT Sr. Long Beach, Calif.
Player of the Year
Jana Milin UMES
Rookie of the Year
Jana Milin UMES
Coach of the Year
Toby Rens UMES
