Laurel Johnson Honored As Ivy League Player of the Week
NEW HAVEN, Conn. — Senior middle blocker
Laurel Johnson of the Yale volleyball team has been named Ivy
League Player of the Week after earning a slot on the Seton Hall
Invitational All-Tournament Team this past weekend. Johnson, a
Cherry Hill, N.J. native playing in her home state, registered 3.22
kills per set with a commanding .424 hitting percentage and racked
up a tournament-high 1.22 blocks per set as the Bulldogs swept
through the competition to win the tournament crown. Johnson is
second Yale player to earn Player of the Week honors this season,
along with senior Cat Dailey, who took home the award on Sept.
8.
In the weekend-opening sweep of Hofstra on Friday, Johnson hit at a
clip of .421, piling up 10 kills on 19 swings. She also tallied
three blocks (one solo), an assist and a career-best seven digs.
The 5’11 middle was even better against the New Jersey
Institute of Technology on Saturday, sharing the team high of 12
kills with just one error on 25 swings for a .440 hitting
percentage. Johnson also added a match-best six blocks (one solo)
against the Highlanders. In the weekend finale, a Yale sweep of
tournament host Seton Hall, Johnson hit .400 once again (7-1-15)
and had a hand in two more blocks.
Junior Kelly Ozurovich was also honored by the Ancient Eight as a
member of the Weekly Honor Roll. Ozurovich, playing in the libero
slot, was the anchor of a Yale defense that held opponents to a
.083 hitting percentage this past weekend. The two-time All-Ivy
honoree took home All-Tournament laurels after averaging a stellar
7.00 digs per set and landing four service aces for the Bulldogs in
the trio of straight-set victories. Ozurovich also eclipsed 900
career digs during this weekend’s action.
Johnson, Ozurovich and the Bulldogs will be back on the court this
weekend as volleyball action returns to the John J. Lee
Amphitheater for Yale’s final pre-Ivy tune-up, the Yale
Classic. The tournament kicks off on Sept. 25 with Yale hosting
Central Connecticut State. First serve is slated for 7 p.m.
report filed by Drew M. Kingsley, Yale Sports Publicity
