Valparaiso junior libero Taylor Root (Jenison, Mich./Jenison) earned Horizon League Defensive Player of the Week accolades for the second time this year after posting a new career high in the digs category last Saturday afternoon.  The honor is the seventh weekly award of Root’s career, tied for the most weekly awards in Horizon League volleyball history.

Root, who started the weekend with a team-best 11 digs in the Crusaders’ sweep of Loyola, registered 38 digs in Valpo’s five-set loss to Green Bay.  The 38 digs surpassed her previous career high of 35, set last year at Appalachian State.  It also ties for the second-most digs in a five-set match in Valparaiso volleyball history, and is just two digs shy of Valpo’s single-match overall record of 40 digs.  Root’s 38-dig effort set a new Horizon League high this year as well.

Root, who averaged 6.13 digs/set on the weekend, now is averaging 5.16 digs/set on the season and is just 41 digs shy of reaching 500 total digs for the third straight season.  Root and the rest of the Crusaders return to action on Tuesday evening, taking on IUPUI in a non-league contest beginning at 6 p.m. CDT.