Contact: Jenna McElroy, Sports Info & Social Media Intern, mcelroy@midwestconference.org
GRINNELL, Iowa – The 2018 Midwest Conference (MWC) Volleyball All-Conference Team and award winners were recognized between semifinal games of the MWC Tournament Friday night. Cornell College’s Nicole Ciari was named the Player of the Year becoming the sixth Ram in the last seven years to earn the award.
Ciari led Cornell to its seventh consecutive MWC Championship and third straight 9-0 conference season. The middle blocker is the only player to be ranked in the top ten of four statistical categories in conference play. She leads the league averaging a block per set, is third in hitting percentage (.351), and fifth in kills per set (4.00) and aces per set (.43). The senior also ranks 15th nationally with 4.82 points per set and joined the 1,000 career kills club earlier this season (1,098).
For the second time in three years, St. Norbert College had the Newcomer of the Year as first-year Grace Baumann is the 2018 recipient of the award. Baumann recorded a double-double in seven of the Green Knights nine conference matches. The outside hitter is the fifth best freshman in the nation with a kills per set of 3.80 which also ranks fourth in the conference. She also contributed on the defensive side with 278 digs and was one of the few MWC players to record a 20-plus kills match and a 20-plus digs match.
Ciari was joined on the All-Conference First Team by last season’s Player of the Year Jillian Schulte. Schulte ranks 12th in the nation at 10.79 assists per set and was the Elite 20 honoree for the third straight season. The Rams led all teams with a total of five players honored as Allison Eikenberry, Alissa McEndaffer, and Sydney Meeker were named to the Second Team. Eikenberry and McEndaffer contributed to the conference’s most efficient hitting team as they rank second (.408) and fifth (.308) respectively while Meeker is fourth with 4.96 digs per set.
St. Norbert and Illinois College both had three players named to the All-Conference team. Joining Baumann on the First Team, was the Green Knights first Newcomer of the Year Lexie Van Hiel while Halie Ferry made the Second Team for her fourth conference honor. Van Hiel topped all hitters in conference play with a percentage of .414 in MWC play and Ferry led the conference’s top team in kills per set with double-digit kills in seven of nine matches.
A trio of juniors led Illinois College back to the MWC Tournament for the first time since 2006. Setter Elizabeth Ganley and outside hitter Ali Pankey made the First Team while middle blocker Maddie Ramsey was named to the Second Team. Ganley ranks third in the nation with 11.13 assist. Pankey posted 3.66 kills per set and Ramsey hit an efficient .342.
Grinnell College was led to its best conference record in program history by two players who rank in the national top ten. Kaylin Kuhn followed up her Newcomer of the Year season with a First Team honor thanks to the nation’s fifth best points per set average of 5.15. Setter Julianna Roth made the Second Team as her total assists of 1,124 ranks eight in Division III. Pioneer head coach Eric Ragan was named the MWC Coach of the Year as he led Grinnell to a 7-2 record and second place finish.
After make the Second Team the past three years, Lake Forest College’s Grace Larson concludes her career with a First Team honor thanks to averaging 4.29 kills per set. Rounding out the Second Team is Knox College’s Mady Ferris and Lawrence University’s Arianna Neumeyer. Ferris ranks fourth in the nation in digs per set (693) and fifth in total digs (686). Neumeyer received her fourth conference honor of her career, two for each team, and ranks in the top ten in the league with 3.55 kills per set and 4.48 digs per set.
| Coach of the Year |
|
|
|
| Eric Ragan |
Grinnell |
|
|
| Player of the Year |
|
|
|
| Nicole Ciari |
Sr. |
MB |
Cornell |
| Newcomer of the Year |
|
|
|
| Grace Baumann |
Fr. |
OH |
St. Norbert |
| Sportsmanship Award |
|
|
|
| Monmouth |
|
|
|
| Elite 20 Award Winner |
|
|
|
| Jillian Schulte |
Sr. |
S |
Cornell |
| First Team |
|
|
|
| Nicole Ciari |
Sr. |
MB |
Cornell |
| Jillian Schulte |
Sr. |
S |
Cornell |
| Kaylin Kuhn |
So. |
OH |
Grinnell |
| Elizabeth Ganley |
Jr. |
S |
Illinois College |
| Ali Pankey |
Jr. |
OH |
Illinois College |
| Grace Larson |
Sr. |
OH |
Lake Forest |
| Grace Baumann |
Fr. |
OH |
St. Norbert |
| Lexie Van Hiel |
Jr. |
MB |
St. Norbert |
| Second Team |
|
|
|
| Allison Eikenberry |
So. |
MB |
Cornell |
| Alissa McEndaffer |
Fr. |
OH |
Cornell |
| Sydney Meeker |
So. |
L |
Cornell |
| Julianna Roth |
Fr. |
S |
Grinnell |
| Maddie Ramsey |
Jr. |
MB |
Illinois College |
| Mady Ferris |
So. |
L |
Knox |
| Arianna Neumeyer |
Sr. |
OH |
Lawrence |
| Halie Ferry |
Sr. |
OH |
St. Norbert |