After the best season in UALR volleyball history, senior Edina Begic was recently named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association’s Division I All-Region Team and UALR Volleyball Head Coach Van Compton was named the Division I Southwest Region Coach of the Year.

Begic tied for the most points in the voting among southwest region outside hitters, getting 19 votes from the region’s coaches.

She is familiar with the honor as she was voted to the All-Region Team last season.

She finishes as the greatest hitter in UALR program history with 2,189 kills, the fourth-most all-time in the Sun Belt, and the second-most in the rally-scoring era. Begic also finishes as the NCAA Division I active career kills leader.

Begic had a career year for the Trojans in 2014, winning her record-third Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year award. She also earned a NCAA- and Sun Belt-record eight conference Offensive Player of the Week awards.

For Compton, this marks her first time as Region Coach of the Year. With 27 seasons at the helm of the Trojans, Compton helped set a program record by going 30-5 for the year and setting a Sun Belt record by going 20-0 in conference play.

She led UALR to its first NCAA Tournament since 2000 and achieved her very first NCAA Tournament win against No. 16-seeded Kansas. UALR entered the Round of 32 with the nation’s longest winning streak of 25 matches before pushing Oregon State to five sets.

Compton won her second Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year award for her outstanding season.

“This is a huge honor to be recognized by your peers,” Compton said. “Nothing is ever done alone, so I accept this award on behalf of my players, assistant coach Todd Bourdo, graduate assistant Daniele Souza Moura, trainer Tony Meyers, SID Tyler Morrison, and the support of our university.”