Mid-American Conference

MAC East Offensive Player of the Week
Katelyn Meyer, Bowling Green, Outside Hitter
Sophomore – Pemberville, Ohio/Eastwood
The Bowling Green sophomore Katelyn Meyer continued her offensive consistency into the weekend, continuing of a streak of having at least seven kills in every match this season for the Falcons. Meyer led the Orange and Brown in kills in a 3-0 sweep over Kent State on Saturday (Sept. 28), notching 15 with a .481 hitting percentage. Meyer also contributed three service aces over the course of the weekend with a season-high two against Ohio on Friday (Sept. 27), helping the team overcome a 2-0 deficit to win 3-2. 
 
MAC West Offensive Player of the Week
Megan Sivertsen, Central Michigan, Middle Blocker
Sophomore – Virginia Beach, Virginia/Bayside
Sophomore middle blocker Megan Sivertsen helped lead the Chippewas to a 2-0 start to Mid-American Conference play this past weekend with victories over Northern Illinois and Western Michigan. Sivertsen, a Virginia Beach, Va., native, had eight kills, three blocks and a .316 attack percentage in Friday’s four-set victory over the Huskies. On Saturday, Sivertsen posted nine kills on season-high .571 attack percentage, with season high of seven blocks as CMU swept the Broncos. 
 
MAC East Defensive Player of the Week
Taylor Sharrtis, Akron, Defensive Specialist
Junior – Concord, Ohio/Lake Catholic
Sharrits played stellar defense in the Zips’ two conference wins this week, finishing with a combined 50 digs between the two matches, averaging five digs a set. She also added 12 assists, which helped propel Akron to a 2-0 record on the week. 
 
MAC West Defensive Player of the Week
Megan Kern, Central Michigan, Libero
Senior – LaGrange, Illinois/Lyons Township
Senior libero Megan Kern had another solid week defensively as the Chippewas went undefeated to open Mid-American Conference action, Friday at Northern Illinois and Saturday at Western Michigan. The Lagrange, Ill., native racked up 37 digs for the weekend to go along with 10 assists and one service ace. In Friday’s four-set victory over Northern Illinois, Kern tallied 18 digs. She followed it up with 19 digs on Saturday at Western Michigan. For the season, Kern ranks third in the league in digs per set (5.18).
 
MAC East Setter of the Week
Isabelle Marciniak, Bowling Green, Setter
Senior – Lambertville, Michigan/Bedford Senior
Bowling Green senior Isabelle Marciniak led the Falcons to a 2-0 start in MAC play, coming back from an 0-2 deficit against Ohio to win 3-2 followed by sweeping Kent State 3-0. Against Ohio, Marciniak logged her sixth double-double of the season with 32 assists and 19 digs, tying for the team lead with Libero Julia Walz. Marciniak then posted 42 assists in the three-set match against Kent State, marking her sixth time this season recording 40 or more assists in a single match. 
 
MAC West Setter of the Week
Kendall Braate, Central Michigan, Setter (Sophomore – Byron Center, Michigan/Byron Center)
Grace Butler, Central Michigan, Setter (Junior – Hawthorn Hills, Illinois/Carmel Central)
The 6-2 setter rotation of junior Grace Butler and sophomore Kendall Braate helped lead the Chippewas to an undefeated weekend with wins over Northern Illinois and Western Michigan to open Mid-American Conference play. Braate, a Byron Center, Mich., native posted up 42 (6.00/set) assists throughout the two-game stretch followed by Butler who totaled 34 (4.86/set) for the weekend. Braate played all seven sets for the Chippewas compiling three kills and 13 digs. She led the team with 25 assists in Friday’s four-set win over the Huskies and followed it up with 17 in Saturday’s sweep of the Broncos. Butler, a Hawthorn Woods, Ill., also played in all seven sets totaling 14 digs on the weekend and had a hitting percentage of .667. She finished with 21 and 13 assists respectively over NIU and WMU. 

 
  
Other Nominees
Alexa Adleta, Akron, Outside Hitter
Junior – West Chester, Ohio/Lakota East
Adleta’s strong offensive performance helped lead the way to two 5-set victories this past week for Akron. She finished with 15 kills in both matches while averaging a .294 hitting percentage on the week.  She also added 3 aces between the two matches, which helped contribute to her 3.85 points per set on the week.
 
Grace Balensiefer, NIU, Setter
Sophomore – Lafayette, Indiana/McCutcheon
Averaged 10.62 assists per set for the week as NIU split four-set matches against Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan… Filled the box score with 42 assists, nine digs, three kills, two blocks and an ace in the Huskies’ win over Eastern Michigan Saturday night… Has had at least 40 assists in a match seven times this season.
 
Paige Beck, Buffalo, Libero
Sophomore – Toledo, Ohio/Northview
Sophomore Paige Beck continued her strong defensive play as she averaged 5.30 digs per set over Buffalo’s two matches this past weekend.  She has now reached the 20-dig mark in fourth straight matches.  The Toledo, OH native had 24 digs on Thursday against Akron and on Saturday night she reached a new career high with 29 digs in the five-set victory over the Rockets.  Beck was also nearly flawless in service reception as she had just one receiving error in 53 tries.  She also added 12 assists and a pair of aces.
 
Rachel Bontrager, Western Michigan, Outside Hitter
Junior – Valparaiso, Indiana/Valparaiso
Bontrager has now posted double digit kills in 13 of the 14 matches this season after earning 15 kills in a sweep of EMU and 11 kills against CMU on Saturday. Bontrager averaged 4.33 kills per set and nearly had double-doubles in both matches with six against CMU and eight against EMU. In the three-set victory over EMU, Bontrager led the way with 15 kills and hit .419, her third highest attack percentage this season. Against the Chippewas, Bontrager was the lone Bronco to record double digit kills and had one block with eight digs. Over the weekend, Bontrager eclipsed the 200-kill mark for the season and now leads the team with 204 kills, averaging 3.78 kills per set.  
 
Erin Gardner, Kent State, Libero
Sophomore – Avon, Ohio/Avon
Erin Gardner averaged 6.50 digs per set during the opening weekend of Mid-American Conference competition. Gardner’s 28 digs against Miami Friday night are tied for the fifth-most in the country this season for a three-set match.
 
Vera Giacomazzi, Ohio, Setter
Junior – San Vendemiano, Italy/Liceo Scientific G. Marconi
Junior setter Vera Giacomazzi dished out 97 total assists and recorded two double-doubles last weekend. Giacomazzi started the weekend with her ninth double-double of the season as she posted 57 assists and 14 digs over five sets while adding five kills. Giacomazzi then had 40 helpers and 10 scoops in Ohio’s four-set win over Miami. Giacomazzi guided the offense to a .241 attacking clip and 49 kills in the win over the Redhawks. Giacomazzi had seven total kills over the weekend and also added four blocks against Miami. 
 
Cassie Haut, Eastern Michigan, Middle Blocker
R-Senior – Monroe, Michigan/ St. Mary Catholic Central
Redshirt senior Cassie Haut was impressive for Eastern Michigan as the Eagles began their 2019 Mid-American Conference slate with road matches at Western Michigan, Sept. 27, and Northern Illinois, Sept. 28. The Monroe, Mich. native paced the squad with 25 kills on the weekend, hitting at an impressive .385 clip. Haut is second on the team with 160 total kills on the season and a 3.14 kill-per-set ratio. She is one of just five Eagles to play in each set on the road swing. Additionally, Haut added five blocks between the two matches, good for third best on the team. She ranks inside the top-10 in the MAC in both blocks and assists in 2019. 
 
Abigail Huser, Miami, Libero
Junior – Westfield, Indiana/Westfield
Huser led the Miami defense as the team’s libero during MAC opening weekend. She finished with 28 digs in six sets, an average of 4.67 digs per set. That included a team-high 19 digs in only three sets in the RedHawks’ sweep of Kent State on Friday. She followed that up with nine more digs against Ohio on Saturday. Huser also contributed to the Miami attack, finishing with nine assists in the two matches, including six against the Flashes.
 
Tia Jimerson, Ohio, Middle Hitter
Junior – Sugar Hill, Georgia/Norcross
Junior middle blocker Tia Jimerson set a career-high in blocks in Ohio’s four set win over Miami. Jimerson had 11 stuffs (three solo, eight assisted) in the win and recorded her second double-double of the season with 10 kills on 19 swings. In the opening match of the weekend against Bowling Green, Jimerson tallied 17 kills and added two blocks. Jimerson had a total of 27 kills and 13 blocks over the weekend while hitting .345.  
 
Miranda Karlen, NIU, Libero
Junior – Evansville, Wisconsin/Evansville
Karlen averaged nearly five digs per set as NIU split matches against Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan. The junior libero was not aced once in 46 attempts this week. Karlen had her fourth match with at least 20 digs on Friday night with a match-high 21 against Central Michigan. She also added 18 digs and an ace in NIU’s 3-1 win over Eastern Michigan.
 
Ashley Makruski, Kent State, Outside Hitter
Senior – Amherst, Ohio/Amherst Steele
Ashley Makruski led the way for an improved Kent State offense with 4.25 points per set during the opening weekend of Mid-American Conference competition. Makruski totaled23 kills (3.83 per set) and a .312 hitting percentage against the reigning regular co-champions. She started with a match-high 14 kills and career-high four blocks against Miami on Friday and added nine kills against Bowling Green on Saturday.
 
Olivia Margolies, Ohio, Outside Hitter
Freshman – Galena, Ohio/Olentangy 
Freshman outside hitter Olivia Margolies led the team with 28 kills over the weekend, including a career-high 15 against Bowling Green. In Ohio’s four-set win over Miami, Margolies had 13 and hit .344 while committing just two errors. Margolies hit .263 over the weekend and added six digs and four blocks, including three against Miami. Margolies averaged 3.11 kills per set over the weekend. 
 
Scout McLerran, Buffalo, Setter
Senior – Friendsville, Tennessee/Webb School
Senior Scout McLerran led the Buffalo offense this past week in a pair of five-set matches.  On Thursday against Akron, McLerran finished with 48 assists, while also adding a season-high 20 digs.  She followed that up on Thursday night with 48 assists in Buffalo’s five-set win over Toledo.  For the weekend, McLerran averaged 9.40 assists per set.  She finished the two matches with 26 digs, two blocks, and a service ace.
 
Kathleen Reilly, Western Michigan, Defensive Specialist/Libero
Senior – Overland Park, Kansas/St, James Academy
Reilly has posted double digit digs in every match this season including a 13 digs performance and a 17-dig performance over the weekend against Eastern and Central Michigan. Reilly nearly posted her first double-double of the season in a three-set victory over EMU with 13 digs to go along with eight assists. With 30 digs over the weekend, Reilly became just the third player in program history to eclipse 2,000 career digs.  The eight assists against the Eagles matches her career-high for the third time. Reilly now has 274 digs this season and is averaging 5.07 digs per set. 
 
Natalie Risi, Ball State, Outside Hitter
Freshman – Clarkston, Michigan/Notre Dame Preparatory
Freshman outside Natalie Risi led the Ball State offense with a 2.88 kills-per-set average last week, while ranking second in the backcourt with a 3.25 digs-per-set average as the Cardinals went 1-1 to open league play.
 
Rachel Sanks, Buffalo, Outside Hitter
Senior – Alexandria, Virginia/Thomas A. Edison
Senior Rachel Sanks recorded double figures in kills in each of Buffalo’s matches this past week.  She had 15 kills and just four errors on Thursday night against Akron and followed that up with 11 kills and three service aces in a five-set win over Toledo on Saturday evening.  Sanks also added 16 digs and six blocks over the two matches.
 
Camille Schomer, Eastern Michigan, Libero
Senior – Rochester, Michigan/Oakland Christian
Senior libero Camille Schomer put together a strong defensive performance against Western Michigan, Sept 27, and Northern Illinois, Sept. 28, finishing with a team-best 28 digs on the weekend. The Rochester, Mich. native also finished with a team-leading 4.0 dig-per-set average. Her Mid-American Conference opening weekend performance comes on the heels of a 40-dig weekend, Sept. 20-21.
 
Riley Taylor, Eastern Michigan, Setter
Senior – Indianapolis, Iindiana/Perry Meridian
Senior Riley Taylor set the tone for the Eagles in two matches against Western Michigan, Sept. 27, and Northern Illinois, Sept. 28. The Indianapolis native tallied a team-best 41 assists, good for a 5.86 assist-per-set average. The versatile setter also contributed 15 digs for the Eagles, which was third best for the team on the week. Taylor leads EMU with 309 total assists and a 6.06 assist-per-set average. 
 
Peyton Tilly, Northern Illinois, Middle Blocker
Freshman – Barrington, Illinois/Barrington
Tilly led NIU with 3.62 kills per set this week as the Huskies split matches against Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan… Her 16 kills in NIU’s 3-1 win over Eastern Michigan are a career-high, passing the 13 she had against Central Michigan the night before… Tilly had back-to-back double-digit kills matches for the first time since posting 10 kills against UC Riverside on Aug. 31 and 10 at Chicago State on Sept. 3.
 
Julia Walz, Bowling Green, Libero
Sophomore – Brooklyn, Ohio/Brooklyn
Bowling Green sophomore Julia Walz recorded her first career double-double on Friday (Sept. 27) in a come-from-behind win over Ohio. Walz logged a career-high 13 assists in the match to accompany her team-leading 19 digs. Walz again led the team in digs on Saturday (Sept. 28) against Kent State in a 3-0 sweep, tallying 13 to give her a total of 32 digs on the weekend as the Falcons opened MAC play with a 2-0 record.
 
Emily Weigand, Akron, Setter
Junior – Burton, Ohio/Notre Dame Cathedral Latin School
Emily Weigand’s stellar performance this past week helped propel Akron to a 2-0 record in the first week of Mid-American Conference play. The Zips won two tough five-set matches, in which Weigand finished with a combined 96 assists between the two matches. She finished with 9.6 assists per set, while adding nine kills, eight aces and 24 digs to contribute to the Zips’ efficient offense. 
 
Sarah Wojick, Miami, Right Side Hitter
Junior – Glenview, Illinois/Glenview South
Wojick finished with a healthy .318 attack percentage to lead Miami from the right-side during MAC opening weekend. She put down 17 kills in seven sets, an average of 2.43 per set. Wojick made only three errors in 44 attacks on the weekend. Against Kent State on Friday, she put down eight kills. She followed it up with nine against Ohio on Saturday. Wojick also scored with two blocks in each of the two matches. For the week she scored 20.0 points, an average of 2.86 per set.