The Emory University volleyball team saw juniors Deborah Hong and Alana Dawson recognized for their performance throughout the 2023 season with a spot on the Division III All-American first and third Teams as chosen by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) on Tuesday. Fellow junior Madison Cail and senior Carly Wallace also earned a spot on the honorable mention team.
Hong, who earned first team honors, and Dawson, who took home third team honors, both earned their first-ever All-America selection after helping the Eagles to a regional final finish at the NCAA Tournament this season. The duo was named to the AVCA All-Region team earlier this month while Hong was named the Region VI Player of the Year. With the two selections, Emory has had a player named to one of the AVCA All-American teams in each of the last 24 seasons.
Hong finished arguably the best season of her Emory career as she led the team with 582 digs, the most she's posted in a single season. Her 582 digs finished second in the UAA and she led the conference with 5.49 digs per set. Hong also showed out in conference play totaling 130 digs and averaging 4.64 against UAA opponents. She finished the season with a stellar performance at the NCAA tournament posting 82 digs across 12 sets, including a career-high 35 digs against the Covenant Scots in the second round. Along with digs, Hong also led the team with 43 service aces this season and finished seventh in the conference.
Another Eagle with a career-best season, Dawson earned her way to a spot on the Region VI All-Region first team before earning recognition on the AVCA All-American third team. She finished second on the team with 253 kills and led the team with 73 kills against UAA opponents. She finished second on the team with a .327 hitting percentage and finished second in the conference behind teammate Cail. She had a career-high 20 kills against then-ranked No. 12 WashU and totaled 38 kills during the NCAA tournament, including 19 against Covenant, to earn Mount Berry Regional All-Tournament honors.
Cail also had one of the best seasons of her career and became a major asset for the Eagles' success this season totaling 224 kills during the season with 10 double-digit kill games. She posted a season and career-best 16 kills against then-ranked No. 12 WashU while leading the UAA with a .347 hitting percentage (224-52—495). Cail helped to patrol the net this season finishing first on the team and third in the conference with 98 blocks, 25 solo and had a career-best eight blocks against Averett (Oct. 28) and had four six-block matches this season.
Wallace will set her name in the record books at Emory and has continued to be an impressive member of the Eagles' squad this season. She totaled 319 digs and 251 kills to finish second on the team and she finished eighth in the conference in total digs. Wallace posted a season and career-high 28 digs against then-ranked No. 7 NYU (Nov. 11) in the UAA Championships and recorded 13 kills in the title match. In the final game of the Emory Classic Tournament, she recorded a season-high 16 kills against then-ranked No. 13 Berry (Nov. 4).
The Eagles finished the 2023 season with an overall record of 26-3, qualifying for the program's 27th consecutive NCAA tournament.