RODRIGUEZ TABBED REGIONAL AND NATIONAL DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
RODRIGUEZ TABBED REGIONAL AND NATIONAL DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Nicole Rodriguez has established herself as a strong NJCAA defender in the Florida Region with her impressive start to her collegiate volleyball career. She has logged just over 320 digs on the season in just her first 13 matches as a freshmen for the Falcons. Rodriguez has already broken the Daytona State College record for digs in a match (35) with her 38 dig performance against Hillsborough Community College and is showing no signs of slowing down. Rodriguez's impressive showings last week earned her honors as Region VIII Defensive Player of the Week and NJCAA National Defensive Player of the Week.
"Nicole is a competitor and plays the game with a fire and natural instinct for the game that few players naturally possess. She has an innate ability to read her attackers and place herself at the right place at the right time," commented Coach Stegall on Rodriguez's stellar performances thus far. "She has some freedom within our defensive scheme to adapt, read, and position herself to prepare for our opponent's attack." This approach has worked well for both the Falcons and Rodriguez this season as the Falcons record a 13-2 record on the season, and Rodriguez is tabbed Week Two's Defensive Player of the Week for the Florida Region.
Rodriguez had 137 digs this week in 6 matches of play. Her week was highlighted by three 25 plus dig matches this week against State College of Florida (28), Florida State College of Jacksonville (25) and Hillsborough Community College (38).
Daytona State will continue to look to Rodriguez for defensive leadership and skills as they launch their Mid-Florida Conference schedule on the road with College of Central Florida, September 25th.