Wisconsin volleyball's Sarah Franklin named the national player of the year. Here are three reasons why.

TAMPA, Fla. – The Wisconsin volleyball team's season ended Thursday night, but the Badgers scored one last big victory.

Sarah Franklin claimed her most prestigious player of the year award yet.

The American Volleyball Coaches Association named the 6-foot-4 senior outside hitter the national player of the year at the All-American banquet Friday morning. Previously, the Florida native was named the Big Ten player of the year and AVCA Northeast Region player of the year.

Franklin joins Dana Rettke (2021) as the only UW players to receive the honor.

Franklin averaged 4.15 kills and 4.62 points per set, both career highs. She also hit a career-best .300 while averaging 1.93 digs and 0.53 blocks per set. She reached double-digit kills in 29 of UW’s 34 matches and recorded eight double-doubles.

“There’s just not too many people that are playing at that level with the confidence that she is playing with,” Wisconsin coach Kelly Sheffield said before the start of the Badgers' NCAA Tournament run. “But all of that has come with a lot of work behind it.”

Here are three reasons why Franklin claimed the honor.

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Few outside hitters combined volume, precision as well as Franklin

Franklin’s hitting percentage easily beat her previous career best of .230 that she set last season.

Elite hitters at the position couldn’t match her in that regard. The AVCA All-American team included two other outside hitters on the first team, Texas’ Madisen Skinner (.296) and USC’s Skylar Fields (.293) but neither player hit better.

Many of the outside hitters on the top three All-American teams hit in the .250 range with a handful from .230-.240. Reagan Cooper of Kansas (.346) was the exception but she took almost 400 fewer swings than Franklin.

Franklin's defense, passing were on the mark

Despite its struggles against Texas on Thursday night, the Badgers were one of the most efficient hitting teams in the country. They entered the week ranked second in that statistic. Franklin’s passing out of the back row was a key piece of UW’s ability to get high-percentage opportunities.

When you consider Franklin’s impact as a hitter, her passing skills made her even more unique.

“She’s passing a friendlier ball this year than she was last year,” Sheffield said earlier this season. “Last year a lot of times that ball would come out really low and fast and it was really hard to get underneath It and have some rhythm. She’s lofted the ball a little bit, which is making it friendlier. She’s got more range than I would say she’s had and she’s able to cover more ground.”

Franklin delivered against top opponents

Seven of Franklin’s double-doubles came against ranked opponents. She also posted a .276 hitting percentage in those matches. For the sake of comparison, 10 of the outside hitters on the top three All-American teams didn't hit that well for the entire season.

Franklin's performance against ranked foes included 14 kills and a .424 hitting percentage in the win over Nebraska on Nov. 24 and 28 kills and a .343 hitting percentage in a five-set loss to Purdue on Nov. 17.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin volleyball's Sarah Franklin is AVCA national player of year