Carolina Freshmen Pick Up Three All-ACC Awards

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Highlighted by first team all-ACC honors for Lauren Harrison, North Carolina earned three all-ACC honors as announced Tuesday afternoon, voted on by the leagues' coaches. Parker Austin and Skyy Howard garnered all-freshmen team honors.

A redshirt-freshman from Stone Mountain, Georgia, Harrison earned first team all-ACC honors in her first collegiate season. Playing in 92 sets, all but three matches this fall, Harrison was a force at the net for Carolina. The two-time ACC player of the week led UNC and ranked third in the league with 350 kills. Harrison's 3.80 kills per set also rank third in the ACC and 70th nationally. The outside hitter recorded five 20+ kill matches while hitting over .300 seven times. Harrison reset her single-match high seven times to 28 vs. Wake Forest. She also tallied 24 kills, hitting .319 vs. then-ranked No. 23 Florida State. Harrison recorded a season-best .455 attack percentage at Notre Dame. At the net, Harrison posted a career-high of six blocks twice vs. Radford and at NC State.

A freshman from Edmonton, Alberta, Austin was named to the ACC's all-freshman team. Playing in 91 sets, all but one match, Austin made her presence known as a six-rotation player for the Tar Heels. Earning freshman of the week honors in November, Austin tallied the second-most kills with 256 and third-most digs with 183. The outside hitter totaled 11 aces and 41 blocks, including nine solo blocks. Austin recorded six double-doubles, including a 12-kill and 20-dig outing vs. Colgate. She picked up three double-doubles in ACC play vs. Virginia Tech, at Duke and at Florida State. Austin tallied double-digit kills in 15 matches with a best mark of 22 at UC Irvine. She notched a season-best mark of seven blocks vs. Miami.

A freshman from Charlotte, North Carolina, Howard earned ACC all-freshman honors. Leading the team in sets played with 101, Howard averaged 1.08 blocks per set, ranking 10th in the ACC and totaled 109 blocks, good for the second-most blocks on the team to rank 11th in the league. The middle blocker's 109 total blocks and 100 block assists both rank fifth among UNC freshmen. Howard recorded a career-best, 10 kills three times: vs. Miami (Ohio), Colgate and Virginia Tech. The freshman was perfect at Virginia with six kills on 10 swings without an error to hit .600. Howard tallied double-digit blocks twice with 11 at NC State and 13 vs. Miami.

The three post-season ACC awards is the most for the Tar Heels since the 2016 season. Pitt's outside hitter Kayla Lund was named the ACC Player of the Year after leading the Panthers' to their third consecutive ACC title. Middle blocker Taryn Knuth of Florida State garnered Defensive Player of the Year honors. Finishing second in the league, Georgia Tech picked up the remaining three individual honors: Setter of the Year, Matti McKissock, Freshman of the Year, Julia Bergmann, and Coach of the Year, Michelle Collier.

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Parker Austin

Lauren Harrison

Skyy Howard

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