Freshman Florida setter Chanel Brown (Tempe, Ariz.) has been named the Southeastern Conference’s Freshman of the Week for her stellar performances in the team’s wins against No. 16 LSU and Arkansas this past weekend, the league offices in Birmingham, Ala., announced Monday.
Brown becomes the sixth Gator in program history to earn an SEC Freshman of the Week honor. Five previous players had combined for 10 SEC Freshman of the Week honors all-time.
Brown directed in the Florida offense in a pair of wins this weekend, helping the Gators improve to 12-1 overall and 5-0 in league play. She averaged a squad-best 7.00 assists per set as part of a 6-2 offensive scheme, helping lead the team to an impressive .355 hitting efficiency for the weekend.
Brown led the Gators in assists in both matches, which is a notable accomplishment considering she sets in only three of the teams’ six rotations as part of the 6-2 offense. She dished out a team-high 28 assists in a 3-1 win against No. 16 LSU on Friday night, helping Florida to a team hitting efficiency of .323. Brown then recorded a match-high 21 assists in a 3-0 sweep of Arkansas on Sunday, helping the team to its second-highest hitting efficiency of the season at .408.
On the season, Brown averages a squad-best 5.33 assists per set. In conference matches only, she ranks 10th in the SEC with 6.28 assists per set.
Brown and the Gators return to action on Friday when they travel to Tuscaloosa, Ala., to take on Alabama. Opening serve in The CAVE is slated for 8 p.m. ET and the match will be carried live on ROCK 104 (103.7 FM in Gainesville) with Cory Stephens.
