In a week in which NJCU sophomore middle blocker LIZZELLE CINTRON achieved school history, the accolades continue to arrive on a national scale. For the third time in her remarkable, yet brief career, Cintron has been selected as the Sports Imports/AVCA Division III National Player of the Week by the American Volleyball Coaches Association. After also being named the ECAC Division III Women's Volleyball Player of the Week for the sixth time in 13 weeks, and earning New Jersey Athletic Conference Player of the Week honots, she has been selected as the NJCU Women's Student-Athlete of the Week for the ninth time in her career and the third consecutive week in 2005.
Cintron, the only NJCU player ever to receive the AVCA National Player of the Week award, did so last year on September 7 and November 1, 2004. She was the only player in the nation to collect the honor twice.
In a perfect 5-0 week on the court for the Gothic Knights (9-4), winners of five straight, she became only the second woman in NJCU history to reach the 1000-kill plateau and broke the school record for career blocks. With 1025 kills, she is just 118 shy of equaling the women’s career record of 1143. She now owns the blocking record of 205 total rejections in just 162 career games, eclipsing the mark of 203 which had taken 391 games to achieve.
In four matches last week, Cintron averaged 6.27 points, 4.60 kills, 4.27 digs, 1.80 blocks, and 0.47 aces per game with an astronomical .441 hitting percentage.
On the week, the Gothic Knights swept Ramapo College on the road in Mahwah, NJ on September 20, in a NJAC match, before upsetting Rutgers-Newark, 3-2, on September 22. Cintron also led NJCU to the championship of the WIAC Invitational on September 24.
In 15 games over four matches, she totaled 94 points, 69 kills, 64 digs, 27 blocks, and seven aces. NJCU is 9-4 overall and has won five consecutive matches.
In a 3-0 sweep of Ramapo (30-22, 30-16, 30-24), she hit .414, with 16 kills (16-4-29), six blocks and nine digs.
In a crucial 3-2 win over Rutgers-Newark (30-22, 27-30, 26-30, 30-27, 15-11), she pounded 24 kills (24-5-43), hit .442, and had a match high seven blocks with 21 digs and two aces. It was only NJCU’s third win over Newark in 34 meetings, and the Knights bounced back from a 2-1 deficit in the match, behind Cintron to pull off the victory. She had 15 kills in the final three games of the match and was a perfect 4-for-4 in attacks in the decisive fifth game.
In pool play of the WIAC Invitational, Cintron notched 14 kills (14-4-27), hit .370, and added 20 digs and six blocks, as the Gothic Knights downed St. Joseph’s College (LI), 3-1 (30-21, 26-30, 30-15, 30-16). She sat out the second pool play match, as the Knights swept the College of St. Elizabeth, 3-0.
In the WIAC Championship match, Cintron pounded 15 kills and hit .579 (15-4-19), while impressively adding eight blocks (four solo), 14 digs, and five service aces, as NJCU swept Centenary (30-17, 30-18, 30-20) for the title.
For the season, she is averaging 6.61 points, 4.73 kills, 4.05 digs, 1.88 blocks and 0.54 aces per game with a .397 hitting percentage. Cintron ranks seventh in the nation in blocking and 13
