Player of the Week
Each week of the spring and fall seasons, one player who was originally reported as a recruit by AVSR Global is named Player of the Week for an exceptional performance.
Sept. 23, 2024: Darina Kumanova
University of the Pacific.
West Coast Conference.
NCAA Division I.
Reported by AVSR Global in 2019.
6'0" Outside Hitter. Grad student.
Home: Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
See Kumanova’s bio at Pacific’s site.
Last Week:
• Pacific extended its winning streak to nine matches, and Kumanova, a six-rotation Tiger mainstay, is having her best start to a season yet.
• Pacific, now 10-2, won three times at the Central Cal Challenge, beating Sacramento State, Cal State Bakersfield and host Fresno State.
• Kumanova scored 33 kills, 27 digs and eight ace serves. She is Pacific’s top server this year, posting 20 aces with only 14 errors.
• In four seasons at Pacific, Kumanova has played in all but three of the team’s 394 sets, missing a single three-set match in 2023.
• Kumanova transferred to Pacific as a sophomore in 2021 after a stellar freshman season at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County.
• At UMBC Kumanova was the America East Conference Rookie of the Year and Most Outstanding Player of the championship tourney.
• She led UMBC to the team’s best season in 23 years.
• At Pacific Kumanova earned a bachelor’s degree last spring in Business Administration, specializing in Sports Management and Analytics.
• She is pursuing a master’s degree in Finance now.
• In Bulgaria Kumanova competed for CSKA Sofia, a multi-sport club founded in 1948. She trained with Bulgaria’s junior national team.
Excerpt from 2019 AVSR Global report:
“Expert passer-hitter ready to play six rotations as a freshman starter in mid-Division I. … Master of shots and angles. … Defensive reads and skills are excellent. … Savvy, stable veteran of elite club teams.”
