Gardner earns All-America honorable-mention honors

For junior Sarah Gardner (Rochester, Minn.), the volleyball season came to a close with a 3-1 loss to Washington University in St. Louis in the semifinals of the NCAA Division III Central Regional.

The awards season, however, is still in full swing.

Gardner, already named to the All-Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference First Team and the AVCA Central Region First Team — not to mention the NCAA Central Region All-Tournament Team — collected yet another post-season honor Tuesday, as the junior right side hitter earned AVCA Honorable-Mention All-America honors.

Gardner closed out the season as SMU’s kill leader with 386 (3.16 kills per set). She appeared in all 122 sets, boasting a .272 attack percentage, 55 service aces, 197 digs, 58 blocks and 75 assists.

Her efforts helped guide the Cardinals to a 22-10 overall record and their first NCAA tournament berth since the 2000 season.