ALFRED, NY – First year outside hitter Amber Smith (Penfield, NY/Webster Schroeder) of the Alfred University women's volleyball team has earned her first Empire 8 Athletic Conference weekly award as she is the Rookie of the Week.
 
In an announcement from Associate Commissioner, Janelle Zera on Tuesday afternoon, Smith was named the Rookie of the Week for the week of August 29-September 4.
 
Smith played a key role in helping secure the Saxons' best season start since 1991 with the Saxons opening with a three-match win streak (the 1991 team had a four-match win streak) and also ending a 17-year winless drought against Buffalo State. The weekend also produced the first time the Saxons took SUNY Cortland to five sets.
 
Smith totaled 72 kills in her first collegiate outings with back-to-back 21-kill performances against Wells College and SUNY Cortland on Saturday. She averaged 18.0 kills a match (4.0 kills per set) and an attack percentage of .193 with a career-high of .300 against Wells.
 
Smith also proved to be a top defender, accumulating 81 digs on the weekend with averages of 20.25 digs per match and 4.5 per set. She also set her career-highs in solo blocks with four against Wells (six total on the weekend) and five block assists against Cortland (nine total on the weekend).
 
Smith totaled 86.5 points on the weekend with career-bests of 25.5 points in both the Wells and SUNY Cortland matches. She averages 21.625 points per match (4.81 per set). The first year earned a spot on the SUNY Cortland All-Tournament Team as well.
 
The Saxons will next head to Poughkeepsie, NY for the Vassar College tournament where they will first take on University of New England at 6:00pm on Friday, September 9 before ending the day against University of Pittsburgh at Bradford at 8:00pm. The next day, they look to take on Purchas College and Vassar College at 1:00pm and 3:00pm, respectively.