Aug. 17, 2010

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Kentucky volleyball players senior Lauren Rapp and junior Becky Pavan have been tabbed to the Southeastern Conference preseason All-SEC squad it was announced by the league office Tuesday.

The UK duo is among 10 players selected to the annual squad by the conference’s coaches. The preseason All-SEC team consists of a minimum of nine players, which are voted on by the league coaches. Ties are not broken. Kentucky, Florida and Tennessee led all schools with two selections each.

Rapp is a repeat selection to the preseason squad. An All-SEC second team member in consecutive seasons, Rapp enters her senior season as the leader for the Blue and White in nearly every statistical category. She ranks among UK’s all-time career leaders in hitting percentage (.301) and block assists (317). She has averaged 2.61 kills per set throughout her career. As a junior, Rapp exploded in the NCAA Tournament. Rapp notched a career-best 10-block performance in a UK upset of the tournament’s No. 13 overall seed in Oregon in a 3-0 win. She would go on to pace the team in kills and was named to the All-Region team as UK made its first Sweet Sixteen appearance under Craig Skinner.

Pavan is a first time honoree to the preseason coaches’ selection. A junior middle blocker, Pavan has been a force at the net since her arrival. She has notched 240 total blocks in two seasons and is averaging nearly a block per set. She broke out offensively a season ago with a career-best 2.29 kills per set average on a career-high .315 hitting percentage. She has totaled 21 matches with five or more blocks in her career and has reached the 10 or more kills plateau on 16 occasions.

Kentucky’s 2010 season kicks off on Aug. 28 at the Runza/AVCA Showcase in Omaha, Neb. UK and Nebraska will play in the second match of the showcase with an estimated start time of 5:30 p.m. ET.

Follow along with the Wildcats on UKathletics.com all year long for the most up-to-date information, stats and releases.