Blank, Ochoa tabbed GNAC Weekly Honors, again!

(Winthrop, Mass.) The Great Northeast Athletic Conference announced today that junior Tyler Blank (Rochester, N.Y.) and senior Nick Ochoa (Whittier, Calif.) were selected as the GNAC/Corvias Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week. This is the second time this season that both Blank and Ochoa were selected in the same week – February 1st.

In a perfect 3-0 week for the Raiders, with conference wins over Lasell, Albertus Magnus and Johnson & Wales University, the junior setter dished out 94 assists in just seven sets played for a 13.43 per-set average. Blank directed Rivier to an impressive .348 team hitting percentage in the two games he played and chipped in 11 digs and four blocks. He highlighted his week with a 42 assist, four dig, three block performance in a straight set sweep of previously undefeated Lasell.

Ochoa was once again big in the back row for Rivier on the 3-0 week. The veteran libero scooped up 21 digs in just eight sets played for a 2.63 per-set average. He tallied a match high 11 digs in the 3-1 win over Johnson and Wales to highlight his week.

This is the fourth time in ten weeks that a Rivier Men's Volleyball student-athlete has been selected as the Offensive Player of the Week. Blank has been honored now for the third time (Feb. 1, Feb. 8, Mar. 28) and junior Ian Wolski (Westfield, Mass.) is the other Raider to be selected (Feb. 22).

This was also the third Defensive Player of the Week for Ochoa as he garnered the honors back on Feb. 1 and Feb. 29. Senior Mike Hovnanian (Methuen, Mass.) is the other Raider to earn Defensive Player of the Week honors this season (Feb. 8).

Blank and Ochoa will lead the Raiders into the final stretch of the season tomorrow night as they travel to Boston, Mass. for a date with Emmanuel College.