Rachel Widener, a member of the Mount Vernon Nazarene College women's volleyball team, capped off a stellar career as she became only the third player in the program's history to receive NAIA All-American honors.
Widener, a 5-foot-9 senior outside hitter from Elyria, Ohio, was selected as an NAIA Honorable Mention All-American after leading the team with 617 digs and a .343 attack percentage. The former All-Ohioan at Open Door Christian Academy also contributed 32 aces, 51 assists, 102 blocks, and 474 kills.
Widener, who was the American Mideast Conference Player of the Week four times this season and the NAIA National Player of the Week once, was named to the AMC and NAIA Region IX First Teams. She was also named to the All-Tournament Team at each of the three tournaments that MVNC participated in during the season.
Widener finishes her career at MVNC as the all-time leader in digs with 2,452, and she also ranks second in school history with 1,766 career kills.
The only two other Lady Cougars to receive NAIA All-American honors were Jodi Webb (Honorable Mention in 1995) and Tara Seiter (Second Team in 1998 and Honorable Mention in 1997).
