East Division
Offensive Player of the Week
Savannah Matthews, Kent State, Sophomore, Outside Hitter
Matthews powered Kent State to consecutive 3-0 victories at Buffalo by averaging 4.67 kills per set while hitting at a .408 clip. Matthews posted a career-best .520 hitting percentage with 16 kills and three errors on 25 swings on Thursday and added 12 kills on Friday. She also had four block assists to average 5.00 points per set overall for the two matches.
Defensive Player of the Week
Sam Steele, Ohio, Freshman, Defensive Specialist/Libero
Steele (Omaha, Neb.) led a strong defensive effort by the Ohio volleyball team (2-2, 2-2 MAC) in a split of matches at Akron last weekend at James A. Rhodes Arena, totaling a team-high 57 digs (6.33 per set) and a reception percentage of .937 with just four errors in 63 attempts. Steele led the match with 27 digs in Ohio's 3-1 (25-22, 25-19, 19-25, 25-20) victory over the Zips last Thursday (February 4) and followed that effort up with a match-high 30 digs in a 3-2 (15-25, 25-12, 25-19, 14-25, 15-7) loss to Akron the following day.
Setter of the Week
Alex Haffner, Kent State, R-Junior, Setter
Haffner directed a Kent State offense that posted a .333 hitting percentage while averaging 10.33 assists per set in a pair of 3-0 wins at Buffalo. Haffner was tied for second on the team with an average of 2.33 digs per set to help limit the Bulls to a .116 hitting percentage. For the season, she is the MAC leader in assists per set (12.46) and has led the Golden Flashes to the conference’s top hitting percentage (.300) and 14.85 kills per set.
West Division
Offensive Player of the Week
Rachel Bontrager, Western Michigan, Senior, Outside Hitter
Bontrager led the Broncos to a 2-0 weekend at Eastern Michigan with 32 kills, averaging 4.57 kills per set. Bontrager against the Eagles registered a staggering .406 attack percentage to go along with 21 digs and two blocks. In the two matches at EMU, Bontrager averaged 3.00 digs, 0.29 blocks and 4.86 points per set. In a three-set victory over EMU on Thursday, Bontrager notched a team-high 11 kills with eight digs and a .350 attack percentage. She followed up her performance on Thursday with her second double-double of the season with 21 kills and 13 digs. On Friday, the senior outside hitter registered a staggering .432 attack percentage and totaled 22.5 points in the four-set win for WMU. Overall Bontrager ranks third in the MAC in kills per set (4.10) and points per set (4.50).
Defensive Player of the Week
Maggie Huber, Ball State, Sophomore, Libero
Thanks to an impressive 7.00 digs-per-set average in last week’s series at Toledo, Ball State sophomore libero Maggie Huber climbed atop the Mid-American Conference defensive rankings and into the top 10 nationally with a 6.26 digs-per-set average for the season. Huber collected a career-high 35 digs in Thursday’s five-set loss at Toledo, and tied the mark Friday in leading the Cardinals to a five-set victory. She also tied her career high with four aces in Friday’s win, while finishing the two-match series with six. Huber also handed out 11 assists versus Toledo, while logging a .932 (41-for-44) reception percentage.
Setter of the Week
Logan Case, Western Michigan, Freshman, Setter
Case paced the Broncos this past week with a staggering 92 assists, averaging 13.14 assists per set in a 2-0 week at Eastern Michigan. Case also posted two kills, two service aces and one block in her matches against the Eagles. In the Thursday three-set victory over Eastern Michigan, Case had 33 assists to go along with two kills, one service ace and one block. Case earned her first career double-double on Friday in a four-set victory over EMU. Case tallied a career-high 59 assists to go along with a career-high 11 digs. The 59 assists were the most in a match this season for Western Michigan and the first 50-plus assist match for the Broncos since Nov. 2, 2019. Overall, Case ranks fourth in the MAC at 10.71 assists per set.
