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GRINNELL, Iowa – Knox College freshman Rose Griffin earned her first Midwest Conference Volleyball Offensive Performer of the Week honor, while Lindsay Fujimoto was named the Defensive Performer of the Week for the second time this season.
Full Release
Griffin, a Maryland Heights, Mo. native, totaled 38 kills, five service aces, 29 digs, and five solo blocks as the Prairie Fire split a pair of Midwest Conference matches last week at home. Griffin posted 20 kills, 18 digs, four aces, and two solo blocks in a 3-2 Knox win (25-15, 18-25, 25-15, 19-25, 15-5) over Beloit College on Friday, October 10. She followed with a double-double – 18 kills and 11 digs – along with three solo blocks in a 3-2 setback (25-19, 25-21, 14-25, 16-25, 9-15) against Lake Forest College on Saturday, October 11. Griffin leads the Midwest Conference with 255 total kills and she’s third in the league with an average of 2.93 kills per set.
Fujimoto, a senior from Honolulu, Hawaii, averaged 7.29 digs per set and added six assists in a pair of contests for Grinnell College over the weekend. She had 15 digs against St. Norbert College College on Friday, then came back the next day with a match-high 36 digs against Lawrence University as the Pioneers earned their first league win of the season.
Honorable Mention Offense
Torie Pasiewicz helped lead Lake Forest to a pair of five-set victories on the road last weekend. She tallied a temporary season-high with 38 assists Friday night at Monmouth College before surpassing it with 44 at Knox the next day. Pasiewicz also had five kills, a block, and an ace in each match and added 11 digs on Friday and 13 on Saturday.
Diamond Boyd paced Cornell College's attack with 34 kills (3.40 kps) as the Rams (14-6 overall, 5-0 MWC) notched conference wins over Monmouth and previous-league unbeatens Lawrence and St. Norbert. The Ram sophomore equaled a career high with 14 kills on .312 hitting against St. Norbert. Boyd also averaged 0.70 blocks per set for the week.
Natalie Duncombe of Grinnell averaged 2.86 kills and hit .220 in a pair of matches over the weekend. She had a team-high nine kills and hit .222 against St. Norbert on Friday, then added an 11-kill performance as the Pioneers topped Lawrence on Saturday.
Katie Berrell helped Ripon College go 1-1 last week, leading the Red Hawks in kills on both occasions. She totaled 26 Kills (3.71 K/set) combined, while finishing with a hitting percentage of .289 or higher in both matches. Berrell also combined for 10 digs and one service ace.
Honorable Mention Defense
Cornell College’s Kylea Weber went over 2,200 digs for her career in leading the Rams (14-6 overall, 5-0 MWC) to a 3-0 week over league foes Monmouth, Lawrence and St. Norbert. The senior libero averaged 5.5 digs per set and went 57-of-58 in serve reception. Weber scooped 27 digs in a three-set victory over Lawrence.