Benitez photo courtesy of Kassi Westermann

While a libero seldom gets as much attention as volleyball’s glamour positions up front, there are times when these defensive specialists make themselves so valuable they can’t be ignored, even in a losing effort.

That was the case last week with Snyder junior Abby Benitez in a pair of dual matches against Monahans and Odessa Permian on Tuesday, followed by another against Jim Ned and Denver City on Saturday.  The Lady Tigers didn’t register a single win, but Benitez’s hustle was astonishing enough to earn her our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award for  the week ending Sept. 19.