RENO, Nev. — For leaving volleyball opponents in perpetual awe, Hawai'i senior Kanoe Kamana'o was named Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year last night for the third consecutive season.

Kamana'o and Kim Willoughby are the only ones in WAC history to earn Player of the Year honors three times. Both were three-time All-Americans for the Rainbow Wahine, with Kamana'o up for a fourth her final year.

By now, WAC coaches have seen it all from Kamana'o. When she awkwardly drop-kicked the volleyball into the stands during her Senior Night celebration, New Mexico State coach Mike Jordan rolled his eyes.

"That is probably the least graceful thing she has done in her life," Jordan said with a grin.

Kamana'o broke Hawai'i's career assist record as a junior and the WAC record this season. She could move into the NCAA career Top 10 before she is done. The 'Iolani graduate is also among UH's Top 10 in aces, digs and blocks. She is the only player in school history to reach the Top 10 in every major category.

UH coach Dave Shoji believes this might be her finest year. The team has lost three starters to season-ending injuries and battled ballhandling problems . Still, Kamana'o is among the top five nationally in assists.

"I don't know if she's had the same supporting cast she had before," Shoji said. "I think she becomes more the focal point than the hitters this year because we've surrounded her with all kinds of talent in the past. This year we've lost some players and she continues to make us better.

"She is very, very consistent. You probably can't get much more from her and you never get much less. She's always steady."

Shoji also felt "arguments could be made" for senior Sarah Mason and sophomore Jamie Houston for Player of the Year. Both were voted to the first team, Mason for the second straight season; Houston was a second-team selection last year.

UH middles Juliana Sanders and Kari Gregory are also on the first team — Sanders for the second time. The other starters — Jayme Lee and Amber Kaufman — are on the five-player All-Freshman Team.

It was the 11th straight year a Rainbow Wahine has been named Player of the Year.

Jordan earned Coach of the Year honors for the fourth consecutive time — his last two seasons in the Sun Belt Conference and last year in the WAC, when he shared the honor with Shoji. Fresno State's Lacey Gera is Freshman of the Year.

Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com.