Kentucky libero Jenni Casper was named the Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Week for volleyball, the league announced Monday. It was the second such honor for the 5-3 junior from Louisville, who earned the distinction for the week of Oct. 3-9 as well.

?Jenni had an incredible week for us on the court,? Coach Craig Skinner said. ?She is relentless in her defense and takes great pride in helping better this program. You can?t ask for much more than that.?

Casper totaled 65 digs in Kentucky?s SEC matches with LSU and Arkansas, including a career-best 36 digs in a five-game match at LSU Friday. She followed with a 29-dig performance against Arkansas, helping UK to a 3-1 victory. Casper is the all-time digs leader at UK and leads the conference in digs per game with 5.78 in league play.

As UK?s top back-row player, Casper is averaging 5.09 dpg overall this season. She has totaled double-figure digs in 24 of UK?s 26. Casper has been an impact player in the conference throughout her career, earning Defensive Player of the Year honors as a freshman in 2003.

Kentucky, which owns its most wins since 1993 with a 17-9 record, finished regular-season SEC play with a 10-6 record, the best since 1993 as well. The Wildcats face Arkansas in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Friday.