Downes honored again as CAC Volleyball Player of the Week

YORK, Pa. - The Capital Athletic Conference announced its weekly conference player of the week awards and Salisbury University junior outside hitter Rachel Downes was named the volleyball recipient for October 27. This is the second time this season that Downes has garnered this award.

Downes led the No. 22 Sea Gulls to a perfect 4-0 mark last weekend as SU won the Seahawk Invitational. The Sea Gulls (32-1, 7-0 CAC) defeated St. Mary's (Md.) College, 3-1, on Friday and to claim the top seed in the upcoming CAC tournament. SU, the defending CAC champions, continued its dominance with three victories over Neumann, 3-1, followed by 3-0 shutouts against Marietta and Gwynedd-Mercy on Saturday. Salisbury has won a nation best 32 consecutive matches. The win streak now ranks 10th all-time in NCAA Division III volleyball history. The all-time consecutive matches won record of 60 wins is held by Central (Iowa) College.

The Salisbury, Md., native provided double-doubles in three straight matches to begin the Seahawk Invitational. Downes notched 13 kills and 17 digs on Friday against St. Mary's. In Friday night's victory over Neumann, Downes had 11 kills and 17 digs. She also had a big game on Saturday against Marietta as she tallied 13 kills and 13 digs.

This is the fifth time this season a Sea Gull has been recognized by the conference. Stacey Krebs was named CAC Player of the Week for October 13. Junior Nicole Massarelli has received the honor twice (September 8 and September 22) while Downes received her first honor on September 15.

The maroon and gold will conclude the regular-season with a final Capital Athletic Conference match on the road against Gallaudet University on Wednesday, October 29, at 7 p.m. Salisbury met Gallaudet earlier this season as part of the Green Terror Invitational hosted by McDaniel College where SU defeated the Bison, 3-0.