LCCC Volleyball Raking In Postseason Honors For Historic 2022 Season

December 9, 2022 – – Star power combined with great coaching led the Lorain County Community College women's volleyball team to a respectable 14-7 record overall with a 10-4 mark in conference play. They finished third in the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference (OCCAC) this season and in the weeks following have been raking in postseason awards not only at the regional level, but also in the national ranks.

After the season wrapped up, it seemed as though every week a new honor or award was announced for the Commodores commemorating their historic 2022 campaign:

• At the conclusion of the season, Chelsey Farris was named NJCAA Region 12 DIII All-Region.
• In mid-November, LCCC took home three of the five major postseason awards given out by the OCCAC: Ted Whitsel – Coach of the Year, Farris – Player of the Year, and Izabel Gallardo-Santo Domingo – Libero of the Year.  In addition to the postseason awards received from the OCCAC, Farris was named First Team All-OCCAC and Gallardo-Santo Domingo made Second Team All-OCCAC.
• On December 1, it was announced that Farris made NJCAA DIII First Team All-America making her the first Commodore to get All-American honors since Kara Sullinger in 2019 and the first since Kady Gibbs (Whitsel) in 2015 to make the First Team.

"In my time here, we have never had a player receive top honors in the conference," said Head Coach Ted Whitsel, who wrapped up his ninth season with the Commodores in October.  "This year having two being selected for top honors (in the conference) is just really special."

For Whitsel, this is his first OCCAC Coach of the Year Award. Since he was hired in 2014, Whitsel has guided the Commodores to the NJCAA DIII National Championships three times with one runner-up finish (2014) and two fifth place finishes (2015, 2018). This year's squad finished second in the OCCAC in kills/set (11.73), assists/set (10.72), digs/set (18.65), and points/set (15.7).

"It's a great honor to be recognized by your fellow coaches in what was a very competitive conference from top to bottom this year," said Whitsel. "As a coach, we are only as good as our players make us to be. This year, I was privileged to have a very talented team based on our season's record and postseason honors."

Leading the way both offensively and defensively for the Commodores all season was Farris. She was tops in the OCCAC in kills per set with 4.07 (9th in NJCAA DIII), hitting percentage with .362 (6th in NJCAA), and points per set with 5.1 (5th in NJCAA).  Defensively, she had top-ten rankings in solo blocks (41), total blocks (78), and blocks per set (1.05 – 10th in NJCAA). 

"Have tunnel vision, always," said Farris when asked how she was able to put together such a historic season for the Commodores. "These awards are a direct result of playing every day, setting goals, and having a routine.  It makes you a good player."

Next year, the Elyria native will attend Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio, where she will play volleyball for the Marauders next fall.

"Winning Player of the Year and First Team All-American is a wonderful accomplishment and I did not expect it to happen," said Farris.  "My teammates and coaches always pushed me to be the best player I could be."

Farris' impact was felt immediately as she recorded 21 kills, hit .472, and had six total blocks in her LCCC debut against Edison State on August 20. Her season-high in kills came against Cuyahoga Community College on September 29 with 31.  Over the course of the season, she won OCCAC Player of the Week four times in three different months (Aug. 22, Sept. 12, Oct. 3, and Oct. 24).

"We have not had a player like Chelsey during my tenure at LCCC," said Whitsel. "She received the Player of the Year award out of more than 100 other players in the conference. She has the ability to hit the ball so hard that defensive players feared her. She is deserving of this huge honor and LCCC is greatly appreciative of her commitment to our volleyball team this season."

Gallardo-Santo Domingo, also from Elyria, was steady all year long at libero for LCCC.  However, she never played the position in the eight years she says she has played competitive volleyball until playing at LCCC.  Despite that, she finished first in the OCCAC in digs per set with 5.57 (15th in NJCAA) and eighth in total digs with 418. 

"It means a lot to me that my hard work on and off the court paid off," said Gallardo-Santo Domingo. "I can't wait to play with the girls again next season.  The coaches and them were very welcoming and helped me gain confidence in playing middle back because I had never played that position before."

In all 21 matches she played in this season, she recorded 10 or more digs.  She had 20 or more digs in nine matches and had 30 or more digs in four. Her season-high in digs came on September 29 vs. Cuyahoga Community College with 41. 

"When Izabel came to our preseason practices, we knew she was a gifted volleyball player," said Whitsel. "It took a little time to figure out how this very athletic player could best help the team. Thankfully, donning the different color uniform and making her libero gave us the best chance to compete.  She led the conference in digs/set as a freshman and we thank her for all the bruises and floor burns she took for the team this year."