Outside hitter Rubena Sukaj was named to the AVCA Northeast All Region Team after leading the Eagles in kills per game (5.0) and service aces per game (.74) in 2006.
 
Outside hitter Rubena Sukaj was named to the AVCA Northeast All Region Team after leading the Eagles in kills per game (5.0) and service aces per game (.74) in 2006.
  
 
Rubena Sukaj and Chelsa Brooks Named to AVCA Northeast Region Team

Pair becomes first tandem in volleyball history to be named to region team in same season

Dec. 6, 2006

WASHINGTON - American University volleyball sophomore outside hitter Rubena Sukaj (Tirana, Albania/Asim Vokshi) was named to the ACVA Northeast Region team and junior middle blocker Chelsa Brooks (Hilliard, Ohio/Hillard Darby) was one of six players to earn AVCA Northeast Region Honorable Mention honors, AVCA officials announced Wednesday. The pair's nominations to the team mark the first time that two Eagles have been named to the regional squad in the same year.

"They both had great years for our team," head coach Barry Goldberg said. "Rubena and Chelsa are well deserving of these honors after leading our program to maybe the best three months of volleyball in my years of coaching at AU."

The nomination to the All-Region team is just one of many honors Sukaj has earned in her breakout sophomore season. As the primary attacker on the Eagles' squad, Sukaj racked up 540 kills (5.00 per game) and tallied 80 service aces (.74 per game). Her kills per game average is 12th and aces per game are third in NCAA Division I. Both statistics are third in the AU single season record books as well. Her dominance in PL competition earned her three Patriot League Player of the Week nods as well the title of 2006 Patriot League Player of the Year and First-Team honors.

In 2006, Brooks also made dramatic improvements over her already accomplished first two years as an Eagle. As the leading force in the middle for American, Brooks hit a team-high .351 while compiling a 1.15 block per game average. The latter statistic was tops in the Patriot League and third all-time in the AU single-season record books, while her hitting percentage was sixth all-time. Brooks was equally impressive against NCAA Tournament-qualifying teams, hitting .321 with 2.7 kills per game and 1.48 blocks per game.

The pair were major reasons behind the successes of an Eagle team that won its sixth straight PL Championship and reeled off 19 straight wins and 14 consecutive by a 3-0 margin. American's season ended at Nebraska last week where they fell 3-1 in the NCAA First Round, becoming just the second team all year to win a game off the No. 1 Cornhuskers at home and the first team to take a game against the No. 1 seed in the history of the 64-team NCAA Championship field.