Men's Volleyball: Kokoros, Smith selected for GNAC honors.
Story wriiten and posted by Hayden Barbosa, Rivier University Assistant Sports Information Director
(Winthrop, Mass.) The Great Northeast Athletic Conference announced earlier this week that both Rivier University seniors David Smith (Clinton, OH) and Francis Kokoros (Braintree, Mass.) have been selected as the conference's offensive and defensive players of the week.
Smith led the Raiders to a 2-1 week including a win over Wentworth to help the Raiders remain undefeated in conference play. The senior outside hitter averaged 3.67 kills/set with a .271 hitting percentage on the week. Smith highlighted his week with a double double against conference rival Wentworth scoring 15 kills and 11 digs in the five-set victory.
Smith is currently the top scorer for the Raiders averaging 3.43 kills per set and boasts 182 kills to date. The veteran also puts in work on the defensive side as he has collected 99 digs and 28 total blocks. This is the third time this season Smith has been selected for this honor (Week 1,6 & 7).
Kokoros was huge at the net for the Raiders rejecting 18 of the opponent's attacks in just 12 sets played for a 1.50 blocks/set average. The senior middle blocker paced Rivier's defense with 8 blocks against Wentworth to help the Raiders remain undefeated in conference play. Kokoros was just as solid on the offensive side averaging 2.58 kills/set and a .349 hitting percentage in the three-match span.
The 6'7 Raider has also been sensational offensively as he leads the Raiders with a hitting percentage of .363 and owns 122 total kills thus far. This is Kokoros's 2nd GNAC acknowledgement, the first was in week 5 for Offensive Player of the Week.