Photo

As the setter on the Sacred Heart Prep girls' volleyball team, senior Cammie Merten pretty much had a hand in which direction the Gators took this season. The fact SHP won the Central Coast Section and NorCal Division IV titles and reached the state championship match says volumes about Merten's contribution to that success.

Merten, who surprisingly did not earn first-team honors on the West Bay Athletic League (Foothill Division) honor squad, made up for that oversight by being named a first-team setter on the 2012 MaxPreps Volleyball Small Schools All-American team, released late last week.

Merten was one of 14 players honored on the squad and one of only two players from California (and the Bay Area) on the team. The other NorCal player was Sarah Wallace of Branson, which won the Division V state title.

Merten recorded 241 digs, 867 assists and 43 aces for Sacred Heart Prep, which finished 33-6.

Sacred Heart Prep senior Ellie Shannon also was accorded All-American honors by MaxPreps as she was named to the 14-player second team. The 6-foot outside hitter finished with 366 kills, 108 digs, 110 blocks and 95 percent serving (only five service errors). Shannon was the only player from California named to the second team.

SHP Athletic Director Frank Rodriguez believes this is the first time the volleyball program has earned All-American honors. Sarah Daschbach, who is a freshman at Princeton this season, was named to the MaxPreps Division IV all-state team in both her junior and senior years at SHP.

— Palo Alto Online Sports/SHP Athletics

Are you receiving Express, our free daily e-mail edition? See a sample and sign-up for Express.