Mid-American Conference

MAC East Offensive Player of the Week
Andrea Mitrovic, Buffalo, Outside Hitter
Sophomore – Mississauga, Ontario/Silverthorne Academy
Sophomore Andrea Mitrovic was dominant this weekend as the Bulls picked up a pair of road victories.  On Sunday, Mitrovic set a new school record for kills in a match as she had 34 kills in the 3-2 win at Kent State.  The 34 kills broke a 23-year old school record set back in 1995.  She also added 16 digs and four blocks in the victory over the Golden Flashes. It was the second time in as many matches that Mitrovic had set a career high for kills as she had 25 in Buffalo’s 3-2 win at Ohio on Friday night, which was UB’s first ever win at the Convocation Center.  For the weekend, Mitrovic averaged 5.9 kills per set and 6.55 points per set.  For the year, she is averaging just over 4.3 kills per set.
 
MAC West Offensive Player of the Week
Cassie Haut, Eastern Michigan, Middle Blocker
R-Junior – Monroe, Michigan/St. Mary Catholic Central
Redshirt junior Cassie Haut was a shining light on offense through the entirety of the weekend, finishing with 23 kills while hitting .500 overall. The Monroe, Mich. native’s 14 kills against Toledo marked the ninth time on the season she had finished with double-digit kills, and the fourth time she’s done so while committing one or fewer error. 
 
MAC East Defensive Player of the Week
Kallie Seimet, Bowling Green, Libero
Senior – Oregon, Ohio/Clay
Bowling Green’s loss to Western Michigan cannot overshadow the milestones reached by Kallie Seimet in the Falcons’ pair of matchups over the weekend. Against Miami and Western Michigan, the Libero from Oregon, Ohio totaled 69 digs bringing her weekend average in digs per set to an impressive 8.62, and that’s only the tip of the iceberg. Seimet reached a season high of 37 digs against the Miami RedHawks, which put Kallie at a total 1,973 career digs as a BGSU Falcon. Kallie reached the 2,000 career digs milestone against Western Michigan; 32 digs throughout the match puts Seimet at a current total of 2,005 career digs.  
 
MAC West Defensive Player of the Week
Miranda Karlen, NIU, Libero
Sophomore – Evansville, Wisconsin/Evansville
Karlen averaged 7.57 digs per set this week as NIU split matches against Western Michigan and Miami. On Thursday, Karlen had 24 digs, four assists, and a pair of aces as the Huskies defeated the Broncos in four sets. She then had a match-high 29 digs at Miami on Sunday. Her 29 digs were just two shy of her career-high of 31 and came in only three sets. Karlen has had at least 20 digs in each of her last five matches, and in nine matches total this season.
 
MAC East Setter of the Week
Scout McLerran, Buffalo, Setter
Junior – Friendsville, Tennessee/Webb School
Junior setter Scout McLerran rejoined the starting lineup this weekend and helped guide the Bulls to a pair of road victories as she averaged 10.30 assists per set.  She began the weekend with 47 assists in the five-set win at Ohio on Friday night, UB’s first ever victory at Ohio.  She also added six kills and 14 digs against the Bobcats. On Sunday, McLerran had 56 assists in the win at Kent State, while also finishing with four kills and 12 digs. McLerran moved into sixth place on UB’s career assists list.
 
MAC West Setter of the Week
Amber Seaman, Ball State, Setter
Junior – Carmel, Indiana/Brebeuf
Junior setter Amber Seaman led the Ball State women’s volleyball team to a perfect 2-0 record last week by handing out 12.00 assists per set and running the offense at a .264 (93-28-246) efficiency in sweeps of Eastern Michigan and Central Michigan. Seaman, who also recorded double-doubles in each match, also hit an impressive .611 (11-0-18) on her own, while also serving up three aces. Seaman opened the week by leading the Cardinals to a .278 rate of success in a sweep of MAC West Division Co-Leader Eastern Michigan. She handed out 35 assists in the contest, while also scoring 10 digs for her second double-double of the season. On the attack, Seaman hit .600 with six kills on 10 swings with no errors. She also served up an ace and scored a pair of block assists. In Saturday’s sweep of Central Michigan, Seaman ran the offense at a .252 clip, handed out 37 assists and corralled 11 digs for her second double-double of the weekend and third of the season. She also added the match’s only two service aces, scored five kills, hit .615 and tallied a block assist.
 

 
Other Nominees
Grace Balensiefer, NIU, Setter
Freshman – Lafayette, Indiana/McCutcheon
Balensiefer averaged 9.71 assists per set this week as NIU split matches with Western Michigan and Miami. The freshman setter had a career night in the Huskies’ 3-1 win over Western Michigan on Thursday with 48 assists, eight kills, and four blocks. It was her third match of at least 40 assists in her last four. She had 20 assists at Miami on Sunday afternoon. Since the start of MAC play, Balensiefer has averaged over 10 assists per set. 
 
Ellie Dunn, Ball State, Outside Hitter
Senior – Sugar Grove, Illinois/Kaneland
Senior outside attacker Ellie Dunn led the Ball State offense with a 4.33 kills-per-set average last week, blasting match-highs of 13 kills in sweeps of both Eastern Michigan and Central Michigan. She registered her team-leading seventh double-double of the season in Saturday’s win over the Chippewas, securing 11 digs to go along with her 11 kills. She was also credited with a pair of blocks in each contest to finish the weekend with a 4.67 points-per-set average, well above her 3.94 average for the season.
 
Erin Gardner, Kent State, Libero
Freshman – Avon, Ohio/Avon
Erin Gardner tallied a career-high 31 digs in Kent State’s five-set victory over rival Akron on Friday. Gardner was terrific in serve-receive, helping the Golden Flashes limit the MAC’s top serving team to fewer than 1 ace per set for just the second time this season. The freshman libero added 18 digs Sunday against Buffalo. For the weekend, Gardner averaged 4.90 digs per set and 0.90 assists per set.
 
Vera Giacomazzi, Ohio, Setter
Sophomore – San Vendemiano, Italy/Liceo Scientifico G. Marconi
Giacomazzi led Ohio (8-9, 3-1 MAC) with 79 assists (9.88 per set) as the Bobcats split a pair of home matches against MAC East Division rivals last weekend at the Convocation Center. She recorded a season-high 53 in a tough five-set loss to Buffalo last Friday (Sept. 28).
 
Kayla Gwozdz, Akron, LS
Senior – Temperance, Michigan/Bedford Senior
Senior Kayla Gwozdz led the Zips at Kent State and Ohio this past weekend where she totaled 30 kills between the two matches. Gwozdz recorded season-high 20 kills in Akron’s match against Kent State. The left side hitter turned in a season-best hitting percentage of .304 (10-3-23) at Ohio. On the season, Gwozdz leads Akron with a total of 176 kills, averaging 3.03 kills per set.   
 
Abigail Huser, Miami, Libero
Sophomore – Westfield, Indiana/Westfield
Huser had a huge match in libero shirt against Bowling Green. She recorded 22 digs despite only appearing in three sets. She also put down two service aces. For the week, Huser averaged 6.50 digs per set.
 
Melissa Kolurbasi, Kent State, Opposite
Freshman – Instanbul, Turkey/Stagg
Melissa Kolurbasi had a breakout weekend for Kent State, averaging 2.50 kills per set with a .274 hitting percentage over two matches. Kolurbasi posted a career-high 13 kills and a .345 hitting percentage in Friday’s victory over rival Akron. She helped seal a 15-12 set 5 victory for the Golden Flashes with three kills in the final five points. Kolurbasi added 12 kills on Sunday against Buffalo.
 
Alyssa LaFace, Eastern Michigan, Libero
Senior – Allen Park, Michigan/Allen Park
Senior Alyssa LaFace produced another strong weekend of play for Eastern Michigan, averaging 6.17 digs per set and finishing with 37 total digs in the Eagles 1-1 weekend. The Allen Park, Mich. native had just one error on 29 attempts, and also added six digs to her week.
 
Mary Murphy, Western Michigan, Setter
Senior – Wilmington, Illinois/Joliet Catholic Academy
Murphy did a little bit of everything for the Broncos over the weekend against NIU and BGSU. Murphy ended the weekend with a staggering 84 assists, averaging 10.50 per set while also having 10 kills, 16 digs and four blocks. Murphy had back-to-back 40 plus assist performances, earning 43 against NIU and 41 against BGSU. Against the Falcons, Murphy also collected her third double-double of the season with 41 assists and 12 digs to go along with six kills.  Murphy has seven matches this season in which she has had at least 40 assist and currently has done so three matches in a row.  The senior setter is also coming upon a career milestone, needing just 51 assists to become WMU’s all-time leader in assists. In the NCAA, Murphy ranks 24th in total assists.  
 
Katie Nelson, Ohio, Right Side Hitter
R-Senior – Regina, Saskatchewan/Michael A. Riffel
Nelson led Ohio (8-9, 3-1 MAC) with 10 total blocks (one solo, nine assisted; 1.25 per set) and tied for third on the squad with 15 kills (1.88), ranking third on the team with 20 points (2.56 per set) as the Bobcats split a pair of home matches against MAC East Division rivals last weekend at the Convocation Center. She totaled 11 kills in a tough five-set loss to Buffalo last Friday (Sept. 28), then logged six total blocks (one solo, five assisted) in a sweep of Akron the following day.
 
Margaret Payne, Miami, Middle Hitter
Junior – Bloomfield Hills, Michigan/Cranbrook Kingswood
Payne was a scoring machine, finishing with 28 kills on the weekend, an average of 4.00 per set. She also assisted on eight blocks, an average of 1.14 per set. Against Bowling Green, Payne recorded 15 kills and had a .500 attack percentage. She led Miami with 13 kills and five blocks in a three-set sweep of Northern Illinois on Sunday. Payne scored 32.0 points in seven sets this past week, an impressive average of 4.57 points pwe awr.
 
Meredith Phillips, Western Michigan, Outside Hitter
Freshman – Fishers, Indiana/Hamilton Southeastern
In the Broncos first road weekend during MAC play, Phillips guided WMU to a 1-1 record, falling to Northern Illinois before defeating previously undefeated Bowling Green. Over the weekend, Phillips ranked second on the team with 23 kills and third with a .243 attack percentage. Against the Huskies on Thursday, Phillips was one shy of tying her career-high, recording 12 kills. She followed up her performance with 11 kills against the Falcons. Phillips has now registered four straight double digit kill performances, all coming in MAC play.  
 
Mallory Rajewski, Eastern Michigan, Setter (R-Senior – Midland, Michigan/Midland)
Riley Taylor, Eastern Michigan, Setter (Junior – Indianapolis, Indiana/Perry Meridian)
Redshirt senior Mallory Rajewski and junior Riley Taylor had another strong week for Eastern Michigan running the 6-2 offense. The pair divvied out an outstanding put up 37 assists and 36 assists in three-set bouts with Ball State and Toledo, respectively. The duo upped their combined season average to 11.85 assists per set, and also provide fantastic defense with a 4.93 digs per set average.
 
Kathleen Reilly, Western Michigan, Libero
Junior - Overland Park, Kansas/St. James Academy
Reilly was a crucial defensive part for the Broncos as they went 1-1 on the weekend, falling to NIU before defeating Bowling Green in four sets. Reilly led the Broncos on the weekend with 51 digs including a staggering 34 against BGSU on Saturday. Reilly’s 34 digs were two short of her career-high, set back on Sept. 1 against Northern Arizona. The junior libero ranks top 20 in the nation in total digs and has earned double digit digs in every match this season. Reilly also provided four service aces over the weekend and had no receiving errors.
 
Taylor Sharrits, Akron, Defensive Specialist
Sophomore -Concord, Ohio/Lake Catholic
Sophomore defensive specialist Taylor Sharrits notched double-digit digs in both of the Zips matches last weekend. At Kent State, Sharrits posted 31 total digs, which was just one shy of tying her career high of 32 digs. The sophomore also recorded a perfect 16-for-16 in reception attempts in Akron’s five-set match against the Golden Flashes. Sharrits added 17 digs at Ohio to complete her weekend total of 48 digs. On the season, she leads the Zips with 268 total digs, averaging 4.62 digs per set. 
 
Meg Starling, Ball State, Middle
R-Senior - Hopkinsville, Kentucky/University Heights
Redshirt senior middle Meg Starling set the tone early, recording three blocks in the first seven points in Friday’s win over Eastern Michigan, and went on to help the Cardinals secure sweeps of both the Eagles and Central Michigan on the week. She finished the match versus the EMU with five total blocks and added two more in limited action versus the Chippewas. 
 
Lizzie Stephens, Ohio, Outside Hitter
Junior – Dallas, Texas/Frisco
Stephens led Ohio (8-9, 3-1 MAC) with 25 kills (3.12), five service aces (0.62 per set) and 31 points (3.94 per set) while ranking third on the team with 19 digs (2.38 per set) as the Bobcats split a pair of home matches against MAC East Division rivals last weekend at the Convocation Center. She posted a double-double with 15 kills and 13 digs in a tough five-set loss to Buffalo last Friday (Sept. 28), then finished with 10 kills and three service aces in a sweep of Akron the following day.
 
Maddie Whitfield, Central Michigan, Middle Blocker
Freshman – Saline, Michigan/Saline
Freshman middle blocker Maddie Whitfield continued her standout play of late as Central Michigan made its first Mid-American Conference road trip of the season, traveling to Toledo and Ball State. Overall, Whitfield hit a stellar .444, earning 20 kills on her 36 total attacks. Against the Rockets on Friday, Whitfield had a .385 hitting percentage, recording seven kills. Versus the Cardinals on Saturday, she bested that performance, notching a season high 13 kills on 23 attacks (.478). In MAC play, Whitfield leads the Chippewas in kills (39), hitting percentage (.395) and points (43.5).
 
Meg Wolowicz, NIU, Middle Blocker
Senior – Manitowoc, Wisconsin/Manitowoc
Wolowicz averaged 3.86 kills per set this week as NIU split matches against Western Michigan and Miami. The senior had 16 kills and hit .316 as the Huskies defeated the Broncos in four sets Thursday night. On Sunday, Wolowicz led NIU with 11 kills and three blocks. Over her last 10 matches, Wolowicz has averaged 4.57 kills per set and hit .252.