Photo courtesy Springfield athletics.

AJ Nally, a 6-4 outside hitter for then-No. 5 Springfield, has been named the Sports Imports/AVCA Division III Men’s National Player of the Week. The 2007 AVCA Newcomer of the Year and 2007 AVCA Second-Team All-American earned the honor for his stellar play last week in helping the Pride to wins over two Division I opponents. In Springfield’s first match, a 3-1 win over Sacred Heart, Nally tallied his first double-double of the week with 17 kills and 12 digs, while hitting an impressive .464. He also scored seven aces in the match. He followed that up by hitting a stellar .516 in a sweep of Harvard, as he picked up his second double-double in as many matches, with 21 kills and 10 digs, while also adding two aces to his team’s statistical total. For the week, Nally hit at a .492 clip, while averaging 5.43 kills, 1.29 aces, 3.14 digs and 6.79 points per game. Nally is the 14th player from Springfield to earn the Sports Imports/AVCA Division III Men's National Player of the Week award. The last player from Springfield to earn the award was Andy Sipe on April 9, 2007. The Pride, host of the 2008 Molten Division III Men’s Invitational Volleyball Championship, is coached by Charlie Sullivan.