(Posted April 19, 2004)

Huntingdon, PA - Juniata College senior opposite Brian Dinning (Penn Hills/Pittsburgh) was selected as the Sports Imports/AVCA Division III National Player of the Week for helping Juniata claim its second consecutive EIVA Division III Championship. Dinning becomes the third Juniata player to earn Division III Player of the Week honors this season.

Dinning turned in two of the best performances of his career as Juniata earned two victories over teams ranked in the top three in the AVCA Division III poll. He posted 22 kills, five aces and nine digs in helping Juniata to a 3-2 victory over third-ranked Springfield in the championships semifinal. Then in the championship match Dinning recorded a team-high 15 kills while adding a pair of aces, nine digs and five blocks. He attacked at a .345 clip in the championship match as Juniata topped second-ranked NYU 3-1 to earn the EIVA Division III Championship. Dinning's performance was good enough for him to be named the Most Valuable Player of the championship. He averaged 4.11 kills, .78 aces, 2 digs and .78 blocks per game over the two-day tournament.

In his first year as a full-time starter, Dinning has made a huge impact for Juniata. He received his first postseason recognition as he was named to the EIVA Division III All-Star team. He leads the team in aces, and ranks second in the EIVA in aces per game.
His 40 aces are the fourth-highest single-season total in school history. He is third on the team in kills with 218, and is fourth in both digs and blocks. He has recorded career highs in every statistical category this season, and had a career-high 23 kills in a win this season over Division I Saint Francis. The Eagle senior was named EIVA Division III player of the week early in the season.

With Dinning serving as a major contributor Juniata is on a quest for the program's second Molten Division III Championship. Juniata is currently 15-7 after having claimed its second-consecutive EIVA Division III title. Juniata has held the top spot in the AVCA Division III top-15 poll each of the past seven weeks. Juniata will compete at the Molten Division III Championship April 16-17.

Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.