MAC Announces Volleyball Players of the Week
MAC East Offensive Player of the Week
Cassie Shado, Buffalo, Middle Blocker
Senior – Indianapolis, Ind./Park Tudor
Senior Cassie Shado had her best weekend since coming back from an early season injury as she he hit .480 leading the Bulls to a 2-0 start in MAC play for the first time since 2014. Shado began her weekend with 13 kills and just two errors as she hit .478 in a 3-1 victory over Ohio, the first win for the Bulls over the Bobcats since 2010. She also added five blocks in the match, including three solos. She kept up her strong offensive play on Saturday evening in a 3-0 sweep of Kent State as she had a team-high 15 kills and just two errors, hitting .481. Shado added two blocks in the victory. Shado has now played in five matches this season after missing the first eight, and she is hitting .440 on the year.
MAC West Offensive Player of the Week
Sydney LeMay, Western Michigan, Middle Blocker
Senior – Middleville, Mich./Thornapple Kellogg
Middle blocker Sydney LeMay played a pivotal role in Western Michigan starting off MAC play 2-0 on the weekend. In the 3-1 win against Northern Illinois she had a season-high 18 kills and an attack percentage of .361. LeMay also set a new career high with six solo blocks for eight total and a season-high 26.0 total points in the match. Against the defending MAC Champion Miami RedHawks she cranked out 11 kills and an attack percentage of .278. LeMay also had a career-high eight digs as the Broncos took down MU, 3-1. For the weekend, she averaged 3.62 kills per set, raising her season average to .300, and 1.50 blocks per set. Her efficiency in the attack maintained her team lead in attack percentage, which now sits at .323. With LeMay’s help the Broncos were one of three teams to go 2-0 in the MAC on the weekend.
MAC East Defensive Player of the Week
Kallie Seimet, Bowling Green, Libero
Junior – Oregon, Ohio/Clay
Junior libero Kallie Seimet broke her own BGSU Volleyball program record when she tallied 45 digs against Miami in the MAC opener. It is the third time this season that Seimet has set a career-best number and has tallied 40+ digs in a match, to average a team-leading 6.63 digs per set this year. A native of Oregon, Ohio, Seimet also earned her first error-free weekend of the season on her 39 receptions, in addition to posting a total of 89 digs across nine sets played (9.89 d/set). After putting up 45 digs against Miami, Seimet marked 44 in the 3-2 comeback victory over Northern Illinois for the Falcons to earn its first conference win of the season.
MAC West Defensive Player of the Week
Kathleen Reilly, Western Michigan, Libero
Sophomore – Overland Park, Kan./ St. James Academy
Kathleen Reilly averaged 6.00 digs per set as Western Michigan opened MAC play 2-0 after wins over Northern Illinois and Miami. Against NIU she had 20 digs in the four-set win and went 24-for-25 on serve receipts. Reilly helped hold the Huskies to a .101 attacking percentage on the night. Against the defending MAC Champion RedHawks she had a match-high 28 digs in the four-set win. Reilly helped hold Miami to a .115 attack percentage and finished 11-for-12 on serve receipts. On the weekend, she had a receive percentage of .946 and her 6.0 digs per set bumped up her season average to 4.88. The Broncos were one of just three teams in the MAC this weekend to go 2-0.
Other Nominees:
Kelsey Bittinger, Kent State, Outside Hitter
Senior – Strongsville, Ohio/Strongsville
Kelsey Bittinger opened MAC play with big performances on the road by posting 4.29 kills per set and hitting an impressive .369. Bittinger propelled the Golden Flashes to a season-best hitting percentage Saturday at Buffalo by terminating more than half of her swings. She totaled 13 kills and just two errors on 24 attempts to record a season-best .458 hitting percentage. Bittinger had 17 kills along with one ace and one block solo for 19 points vs. rival Akron in Friday’s conference opener.
Miani Bolden, Central Michigan, Middle Blocker
Freshman – Homewood, Ill./Homewood Flossor
Central Michigan opened Mid-American Conference play with a 1-1 record and improved to 9-5 overall. Freshman Miani Bolden led the Chippewas both offensively and defensively. The Homewood, Ill. native posted a 35.9 hitting percentage (22-of-39) and recorded 3.50 points per set over two matches. On Thursday, CMU posted a hard-fought battle and defeated Toledo in five sets. The win was the Chippewas’ first MAC opening victory since 2014. Bolden garnered nine kills and led the team with six blocks (1 solo; 5 assists). On Saturday, the freshman recorded a career-high 13 kills on 18 attempts (55.6 percent) and five blocks in a 3-0 loss to Ball State. Bolden is averaging 2.50 points per set and 1.83 kills per set.
Anna Brereton, NIU, Libero
Senior – Sun Prairie, Wis./Sun Prairie
NIU senior Anna Brereton averaged 5.00 digs per set in the Huskies opening two MAC contests against Western Michigan and Bowling Green. In the conference opener at Western Michigan, Brereton tallied 20 digs and had just one serve receive error in 20 attempts. In a five-set thriller against Bowling Green, Brereton recorded 25 digs and didn’t have a serve receive error in 30 chances; Brereton also tallied four assists against the Falcons.
Kelly Ferguson, Eastern Michigan, Middle Blocker
Senior – Lemont, Ill./Lemont
Ferguson played a deciding factor in Eastern Michigan’s 1-1 week, averaging 2.57 kills per set and 1.57 blocks per set. Her blocks per set total was the highest among all players in the MAC over the weekend. The Lemont, Ill., native helps lead an EMU squad that is second in the conference in opponent attack percentage (.165) and is tops in the league in blocks (144 total, 2.44 per set). The senior finished the week with a .326 attack percentage, leading the Eagles with 10 kills in their 3-0 sweep of Toledo, and is tops in the conference in attack percentage (.414).
Brooklyn Goodsel, Ball State, Outside Hitter
Junior – Corry, PA/Corry Area
Junior Brooklyn Goodsel was a dominant force on both offense and defense for the Ball State women’s volleyball team over the first weekend of Mid-American Conference play, guiding the Cardinals to a perfect 2-0 record by leading the offense with a 5.14 kills-per-set average and leading the defense with a 4.57 digs-per-set average. She also hit .208, averaged 5.79 points and logged a .984 reception percentage, facing a team-high 62 serves which was 26 more than her closest teammate, over the two matches. In the Cardinals’ MAC-opening win at Eastern Michigan, Goodsel registered a match-best and season-high 20 kills, one shy of her career high. It was the third time in her career Goodsel has smashed at least 20 kills in a match. In addition to her solid attacking, Goodsel was just as strong on defense, collecting a season-best 17 digs for her second double-double of the season. In the win at CMU, it was another solid all-around effort from Goodsel which paved the way for the Ball State victory, as she collected her second consecutive double-double with a match-high 16 kills and 15 digs. She also served up three of the Cardinals' six aces, and added a pair of block assists, to finish the match with an even 20.0 points.
Tia Jimerson, Ohio, Middle Blocker
Freshman – Sugar Grove, GA/Norcross
Freshman middle blocker Tia Jimerson (Sugar Hill, Ga.) helped the Ohio volleyball team (7-9, 0-1 MAC) split a pair of matches against East Division rivals on the opening weekend of Mid-American Conference play. Jimerson hit at a .469 clip with 29 kills (3.62 per set), which ranked second on the team. She also led the squad with five total blocks (two solo, three assisted; 0.62 per set). Jimerson tied for the team lead with 13 kills and hit at a .346 rate as Ohio fell to Buffalo, 3-1 (21-25, 25-21, 25-14, 25-17), in the opening match of 2017 league play last Friday (Sept. 22) at Alumni Arena in Amherst, N.Y. She also tallied an assisted block, a service ace and six digs. Jimerson then hit .609 with 16 kills and added four total blocks (two solo, two assisted) to help Ohio pick up its first conference win of the 2017 season with a 3-1 (25-15, 18-25, 25-23, 25-23) victory over Akron on Saturday (Sept. 23) at James A. Rhodes Arena in Akron, Ohio.
Jessica Kloehn, Akron, Middle Blocker
R-Senior – Milwaukee, Wis./ Nicolet
During the weekend, Jessica Kloehn averaged a team-high.314 hitting percentage connecting on 16 kills. She averaged 2 kills per set with a .314 hitting percentage for the two games. In the win over Kent State, Kloehn recorded a match-high three solo blocks with two assisting. Kloehn leads the team in solo and block assist.
Maurissa Leonard, Toledo, Libero
Junior – Oregon, Ohio/St. Ursula Academy
Leonard over the weekend at Central Michigan and at Eastern Michigan, Leonard registered 41 digs and a staggering 5.12 digs per set. Leonard led the Rockets in digs during both games over the weekend with 26 digs against the Chippewas and 15 against the Eagles. On the weekend, Leonard also had four assists. On the season, Leonard has recorded seven matches in which she has recorded at least 20 digs. Heading into the weekend, Leonard ranked fourth in the Mid-American Conference with 4.93 digs per set. Leonard is moving up the Toledo career record book as well as she is 39 digs away from moving into the top five in career digs at Toledo. As a junior, Leonard needs 506 more digs to claim the top spot in Toledo history.
Kaylee Martin, NIU, Outside Hitter
Freshman – Sterling, Ill./Sterling
NIU freshman Kaylee Martin appeared in one match this past week, posting 34 kills and 20 digs in a five-set thriller against Bowling Green. Martin hit .300 in the match and totaled 36 points against the Falcons. Martin’s 34 kills are the most for a Huskie since Lauren Wicinski recorded 39 against Toledo on Oct. 1, 2011.
Nicole Slimko, Bowling Green, Outside Hitter
Senior – Crystal Lake, Ill./Crystal Lake South
Senior Nicole Slimko marked a new season-high for the Bowling Green squad as she earned 20 kills against Northern Illinois in a 3-2 comeback victory, and led the Bowling Green offense with 14 kills at Miami in the MAC opener. It is the first 20+ kill performance for the Falcons this season, and is Slimko’s fifth double-digit kill night of the year, including both matches this week. In addition to a dominate 3.78 kills per set average, the senior notched 3.0 blocks and two digs against the Huskies, making her 21.5 points a high on the year. Additionally, as Slimko hit .172 against Northern Illinois, it is her highest percentage when tallying 10 or more kills in a match.
Rachel Vidourek, Toledo, Right-Side Hitter
Senior – Oxford, Ohio/Talawanda
Vidourek was second on the team over the weekend for the Rockets with 24 kill and led the team with 3.00 kills per set. In a five-set match against Central Michigan, Vidourek was one of three Rockets to have over ten kills as he was second on the team with 17 kills. Vidourek had a match-high .640 attack percentage against the Chippewas. On the defensive end, Vidourek had three blocks in each contest over the weekend. In the first MAC road weekend of the season, Vidourek registered an attack percentage of .488. On the weekend, Vidourek averaged 3.69 points per set. Overall, Vidourek has recorded five matches this season in which she has recorded at least 10 kills. Vidourek is second on Toledo is kills with 128 and ranks first on the team with a staggering .336 attack percentage. Heading into the weekend, Vidourek ranked fourth in the Mid-American Conference in attack percentage at .341. Defensively, Vidourek ranks ninth in blocks per set at 0.87.
Megan Wernette, Buffalo, Middle Blocker
Junio – Naperville, Ill./Naperville North
Junior Megan Wernette led the Bulls defensively as Buffalo picked up a pair of wins this past weekend to open conference play. Wernette had eight total blocks on the weekend, including five in a four-set win over Ohio, UB‘s first over the Bobcats since 2010. Offensively, she added seven kills and just one error as she hit .600, while also recording a pair of aces. In the 3-0 win over Kent State, Wernette added three more blocks, and had five kills and no errors, hitting .455. She averaged over a block per set this weekend and for the year she leads Buffalo in blocking with 40.
