This is the VolleyballMag.com POWs report and we kick off the 2018 weekly awards with two sisters, Akron sophomore Taylor Sharrits and LaSalle senior Jensen Sharrits.
They both got honors in their respective leagues.
Jensen is the Atlantic 10 co-defensive POW, while Taylor got the MAC East defensive honor.
This is a rarity: Sam Houston State senior middle blocker Taylor Cunningham had big numbers as she played six rotations and was honored by the Southland Conference.
The Summit League honored Purdue Fort Wayne senior setter Madison Jaqua after she averaged a whopping 12.91 assists.
There were some great performances to get the NCAA Division I volleyball season underway and all 31 conferences that got under way listed their best.
You can look forward every Tuesday to the VolleyballMag.com roundup of the POWs around the country.
POWs, of course, are players of the week, and we will do our best to list the honorees from all 32 Division I conferences here.
ACC
Player of the week: Pittsburgh sophomore RS Kayla Lund
Co-Freshman: Georgia Tech OH Mikaila Dowd
Co-Freshman: Notre Dame S Zoe Nunez
Worth noting: Lund had 42 kills in three victories. Dowd averaged a team-leading 3.85 kills, while Nunez had 84 assists and 22 digs in three matches.
The complete ACC release
Big 12
Co-Offensive: Kansas State senior OH Kylee Zumach
Co-Offensive: Baylor junior MB Shelly Fanning
Defensive: Texas senior MB Morgan Johnson
Rookie: TCU freshman OH elan McCall
Worth noting: The Big 12 has no release and announces its POWs on Twitter @Big12Conference
Big Ten
Co-Offensive: Ohio State sophomore MB Lauren Witte
Co-Offensive: Purdue senior OH Sherridan Atkinson
Defensive: Michigan senior L Jenna Lerg
Setter: Michigan junior MacKenzie Welsh
Freshman: Northwestern S Kiara McNulty
Worth noting: Witte hit .636 in three matches with just two errors and had 12 blocks. Atkinson averaged 5.1 kills and hit .409. Lerg averaged 8.67 digs. Welsh averaged 12.17 assists and 3.67 digs, while McNulty averaged 11.5 assists and 4.0 digs.
The complete Big Ten release
Pac-12
Offensive: USC sophomore OH Brooke Botkin
Defensive: Oregon State sophomore DS Grace Massey
Freshman: USC setter Raquel Lazaro
Worth noting: Botkin averaged 4.33 kills and 2.82 digs in three matches, including 25 kills against Creighton. Massey averaged 4.33 digs in three matches. Lazaro averaged 11.57 assists, 2.67 digs and .67 blocks.
The complete Pac-12 release
Southeastern Conference
Offensive: Texas A&M junior OH Hollann Hans
Defensive: Alabama senior MB Cidavia Hall
Setter: Georgia junior Meghan Donovan
Freshman: Florida OH Thayer Hall
Worth noting: Hans averaged 5.18 kills while hitting .339 and averaged 2.09 digs. Hall averaged 1.80 blocks in three wins, while Donovan averaged 11.0 assists and 3.25 digs. Hall made a big splash in matches against Nebraska and Texas after averaging 4.56 kills and 2.33 digs.
The complete SEC release
America East
Player of the week: Stony Brook graduate student OH Emily Costello
Defensive specialist: New Hampshire junior L Emily Tanski
Setter: Stony Brook junior LeAnne Sakowicz
Rookie: UMBC OH Paige Krenik
Worth noting: Costello averaged 3.46 kills and 2.76 digs. Tanski averaged 6.5 digs, while Sakowicz averaged 10.62 assists as she won the honor for the third time. And Krenik averaged 2.78 kills.
The complete America East release
American Athletic
Offensive: UCF freshman OH McKenna Melville
Defensive: Wichita State sophomore L Giorgia Civita
Worth noting: Melville averaged 5.5 kills in her first three matches and hit .358. Civita averaged 6.78 digs and took the honor after getting it three times in 2017.
The complete American Athletic release
Atlantic Sun
Co-Player of the week: FGCU sophomore OH Cortney VanLiew
Co-Player of the week: Lipscomb senior OH Carlyle Nusbaum
Defensive: Stetson sophomore L Chelcie Spence
Freshman: FGCU DS Dana Axner
Worth noting: VanLiew totaled 53 kills in 10 sets and hit 4.11 and had 18 digs. Nusbaum had 31 kills, 24 digs and three blocks in two wins. Spence averaged 4.83 digs, while Axner averaged 4.0 digs.
The complete ASUN release
Atlantic 10
Player of the week: Dayton senior OH Lauren Bruns
Co-Defensive: Dayton senior MB Kendyll Brown
Co-Defensive: La Salle senior L Jensen Sharrits
Rookie: Dayton freshman MB Amelia Moore
Worth noting: Bruns averaged 4.36 kills and hit .451. Brown averaged 1.45 blocks in three victories. Sharrits averaged 6.8 digs, while Moore hit .417 while averaging 1.5 blocks and 1.9 kills.
The complete A-10 release
Big East
Player of the week: Marquette junior OH Allie Barber
Defensive: Marquette sophomore DS Martha Konovodoff
Freshman: St. John’s freshman RS Rachele Rastelli
Worth noting: Barber, the Big East preseason player of the year, averaged 4.2 kills and hit .340 in three matches. Teammate Konovodoff averaged 5.9 digs and also had 10 assists. The 6-4 Italian Rastelli had 61 kills in a 4-0 week for the Red Storm. She also had 10 blocks and 37 digs.
The complete Big East release
Big South
Player of the week: UNC Asheville senior RS Cara Guthrie
Defensive: Radford freshman L Grace Green
Freshman: Gardner-Webb MB Hannah Donaldson
Worth noting: Guthrie hit .342 in two wins while averaging 3.67 kills and 1.89 digs. Green had 53 digs in three wins, while Donaldson averaged 2.0 kills and hit .380. She also had 21 blocks.
The complete Big South release
Big Sky
Offensive: Idaho senior OH Kaela Straw
Defensive: Northern Arizona sophomore RS Heaven Harris
Worth noting: Straw averaged 4.46 kills and hit .420. Harris had 22 blocks in four matches.
The complete Big Sky release
Big West
Player of the week: UC Riverside senior OH Kaiulani Ahuna
Defensive: UC Davis senior L Malia Bolko
Freshman: UC Santa Barbara S Olivia Lovenberg
Worth noting: Ahuna averaged 6.67 kills and hit .364, breaking the program record for kills in the rally-scoring era with 30 against Montana. Then she had 33 more against Eastern Illinois before getting 17 against Mass-Lowell. Bolko had 86 digs in four matches, while Lovenberg averaged 9.46 assists.
The complete Big West release
Colonial Athletic Association
Offensive: James Madison junior OH Briley Brind’Amour
Defensive: College of Charleston senior L McKala Rhodes
Rookie: Hofstra freshman RS Aisha Skinner
Worth noting: Brind’Amour had 52 kills and hit .308 in four matches. Rhodes averaged 4.08 digs, while Skinner had 34 kills, 21 digs and 12 blocks and hit .310.
The complete Colonial release
Conference USA
Offensive: North Texas sophomore OH Valerie Valerian
Defensive: UTSA junior MB Kara Teal
Setter: North Texas senior Karley York
Co-Freshman: North Texas MB Rhett Robinson
Co-Freshman: UTSA OH Kirby Smith
Worth noting: Valerian had 37 kills and hit .453 in three sweeps. Teal hit .534 and averaged 1.33 blocks. She also had five aces and four digs. York averaged 12.67 assists.
The complete C-USA release
Horizon League
Offensive: Oakland sophomore MB Jamie Walling
Defensive: Northern Kentucky sophomore L Ashton Terrill
Worth noting: Walling had 40 kills in three matches and hit .451, while Terrill had back-to-back 30-dig matches.
The complete Horizon release
Ivy League
The Ivy League hasn’t started play.
Metro Atlantic
Player of the week: Saint Peters freshman OH Alanis Alvarado
Libero: Marist freshman Morgan Owens
Rookie: Alvarado
Worth noting: Alvarado led her team to its first wins since 2015 with 69 kills and 74 digs. Owens had 48 digs, nine assists and six aces.
The complete MAAC release
Mid-American
MAC East offensive: Buffalo sophomore OH Andrea Mitrovic
MAC West offensive: Ball State senior OH Ellie Dunn
MAC East defensive: Akron sophomore L Taylor Sharrits
MAC West defensive: Toledo senior L Maurissa Leonard
MAC East setter: Buffalo junior Scout McLerran
MAC West setter: Ball State junior Amber Seaman
Worth noting: Mitrovic hit .390 with 42 kills in two matches. Dunn averaged 3.83 kills and hit .336. Sharrits averaged 6.07 digs, while Leonard averaged 6.67 digs, including 31 against Northern Kentucky. McLerran averaged 12.18 assists in three wins, while Seaman averaged 9.75 assists.
The complete MAC release
Mid-Eastern
Player of the week: North Carolina A&T State sophomore OH Courteney Pitt
Defensive: Florida A&M senior L Valentina Carrasco
Setter: North Carolina A&T State sophomore S/RS Edie Brewer
Rookie: North Carolina A&T State MB Lily Walton
Worth noting: Pitt averaged 4.0 kills per set. Walton hit .433 and averaged 2.67 kills. Carrasco averaged 5.0 digs and Brewer averaged 10 assists.
The complete MEAC release
Missouri Valley
Player of the week: UNI junior OH Karlie Taylor
Defensive: Illinois State senior L Courtney Pence
Freshman: Indiana State S Makayla Knoblauch
Worth noting: Taylor totaled 53 kills in matches against USC, Creighton and Kentucky and also had four blocks and 31 digs. Pence averaged 5.91 digs in three matches, while Knoblauch averaged 10.75 assists, had 10 kills and hit. 346 and added 25 digs and five blocks.
The complete Valley release
Mountain West
Offensive: Wyoming sophomore MB Jackie McBride
Defensive: Fresno State sophomore L Reagan Leonard
Worth noting: McBride hit .442 with 26 kills, while Leonard averaged 5.71 digs.
The complete Mountain West release
Northeast Conference
Player of the week: Bryant senior S Kirstyn Sperry
Defensive: Bryant sophomore L Erika Ward
Rookie: Saint Francis OH Madi Tyus
Worth noting: Sperry averaged 7.91 assists and 3.09 digs. Ward averaged 4.27 digs, while Tyus leads her team in kills (48) and digs (57)
The complete Northeast release
Ohio Valley
Co-Offensive: Austin Peay senior OH Cecily Gable
Co-offensive: Tennessee Tech junior MB Rachel Thomas
Defensive: Austin Peay freshman L Jaymeson Kinley
Setter: Austin Peay senior Kirsten Stucker
Newcomer: Kinley
Worth noting: Gable had 533 kills in three matches, while Thomas had 47, 14 blocks and hit .418. Kinley had 64 digs. Stucker had 11 kills, 126 assists and 29 digs.
The complete OVC release
Patriot League
Player of the week: Lehigh junior RS Ana Spangenberg
Co-Rookie: Army freshman MB Emmy Barnhorst
Co-Rookie: Loyola freshman L Katie Forsythe
Worth noting: Spangenberg had 20 kills and hit .349 against Duquesne. Barnhorst averaged 2.57 kills, 1.36 blocks and hit .317. Forsythe had 79 digs — including 41 against Towson — and 17 assists, an ace and a kill.
The complete Patriot release
Southern Conference
Offensive: ETSU junior OH Leah Clayton
Defensive: Wofford senior L Taylor Gill
Worth noting: Clayton had 51 kills in 10 sets and hit .316. Gill had 76 digs.
The complete SoCon release
Southland Conference
Offensive: Houston Baptist sophomore OH Mikayla Vivens
Defensive: Sam Houston State senior MB Taylor Cunningham
Worth noting: Vivens averaged 4.0 kills and 3.1 digs, while Cunningham played all six rotations and averaged 1.33 blocks, 4.78 digs and 2.67 kills.
The complete Southland release
Southwestern
Offensive: Alabama State junior OH Bayle Bennett
Defensive: Alabama State senior libero Kayla Torres
Setter: Alabama State senior Kori Kutsch
Newcomer: Alabama State freshman DS Alexandria Sarathy
Worth noting: Alabama State went 3-1 and took all the honors. Bennett had 56 kills, Torres had 59 digs, Kutsch averaged 9.13 assists and Sarathy had 39 digs, seven aces, seven assists and a kill.
The complete SWAC release
Summit
Offensive: Purdue Fort Wayne senior S Madison Jaqua
Defensive: Denver senior L Olivia Novotny
Worth noting: Jaqua averaged 12.91 assists and 3.0 digs, while Novotny had 30 digs in two matches.
The complete Summit release
Sun Belt
Offensive: Coastal Carolina freshman OH Anett Nemeth
Defensive: Arkansas State sophomore L Tatum Ticknor
Setter: Arkansas State senior Ellie Watkins
Freshman: Nemeth
Worth noting: Nemeth, a Hungarian, averaged 4.58 kills and hit .331 and also had 27 digs and 12 blocks. Ticknor averaged 5.0 digs in three matches, while Watkins averaged 10.75 assists.
The complete Sun Belt release
West Coast
Player of the week: Portland junior OH Shayla Hoeft
Worth noting: Hoeft averaged 3.8 kills, hit .453 and averaged a block per set. Also Nominated: Kennedy Eschenberg, BYU; Lauren Fuller, San Diego; Lindsey Knudsen, Saint Mary’s; Jenna Kuehn, Gonzaga; Riley Patterson, Pacific; Shannon Scully, Pepperdine; Savannah Slattery, Loyola Marymount
The complete WCC release
Western Athletic
Offensive: Kansas City senior MB Tyrecia Lukes
Defensive: Chicago State junior DS Megan Klavitter
Worth noting: Lukes averaged 5.0 kills and hit .542 in sweeps of South Dakota State and Western Michigan and a loss to Austin Peay. Klavitter averaged 5.91 digs, 0.91 assists and 0.36 aces in three matches.
The complete WAC release
