BATON ROUGE, La. — Southern University setter Penina Vito has been named the Southwestern Athletic Conference Newcomer of the Week following an impressive performance across four matches.
 
The junior helped lead the Lady Jaguar offense throughout the week, pacing the conference in assists while making a significant impact from the service line.
 
Vito led the SWAC with 70 assists over Southern's four matches as the Lady Jaguars ranked 12th nationally in assists for the week. The Arizona native also recorded 10 service aces, the most by any player in the NCAA during the week.
 
Vito opened the week with 10 assists, two service aces and a kill against Florida A&M before adding 13 assists, six digs and two aces against Alcorn.
 
Over the weekend, she recorded 24 assists and nine digs against Texas Southern while delivering six service aces. Her six aces marked the most by a Lady Jaguar in a single match since Nov. 7, 2024.
 
Vito closed out the weekend with her second double-double of the season against Prairie View. She reached the milestone in the second set of the five-set contest, finishing with 23 assists and a career-high 16 digs while adding a service ace.
 
For the season, Vito has accounted for 461 assists while splitting time at setter, ranking fifth in the SWAC. Her 5.62 assists per set also rank fourth in the conference.
 
The honor marks Vito's second weekly conference award of the season, joining her SWAC Setter of the Week recognition on Sept. 22.

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