Volleyball

2023 Volleyball Postseason Awards Announced

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ATLANTA - Atlantic Sun Conference programs EKU, FGCU, Lipscomb and North Florida all earned superlative awards to headline the 2023 All-ASUN Volleyball honors announced Wednesday.

Lipscomb's Meg Mersman secured her first Player of the Year award after helping the Bisons to the second seed in the postseason. As a middle blocker, she led the team with 300 kills on the season while hitting .350, the third-best percentage in the ASUN. The Greenback, Tenn., native also led her team in blocks with 94 total and 25 solo rejections. During league play, she averaged 3.42 kills per set while reaching double-figure kills in 14 of the Bisons' 16 conference games. She also hit over .400 in 10-of-16 league contests.

Rocio Moro took home her fourth consecutive Defensive Player of the Year honor and stands alone in league history as the first four-time winner of the award. The San Juan, Puerto Rico native led the ASUN in total digs (537) and became the all-time digs leader in the ASUN this season. She pushed her number of Defensive Player of the Week honors to 12 for her career, a league record, and also set the North Florida program record for both matches and sets played. She currently ranks second in career digs among active NCAA Division I student-athletes.

Sophia Hudepohl was tabbed the Setter of the Year after helping Lipscomb to its 19th consecutive trip to the ASUN Championship. The sophomore leads the ASUN in assists per set (10.50) and total assists (1,092) while helping her squad hit .249 on the year. She was named Setter of the Week five times this season and recorded nine double-doubles, seven of which came in conference play. The Ohio native also added 36 kills as a setter and totaled 22 blocks.

A three-time Freshman of the Week selection this season, Ella Chapman became the sixth individual to capture the Freshman of the Year honor for FGCU. She reached 10 or more kills in four matches this season and had five or more total blocks on five occasions. She averaged nearly a block per set in conference play (0.93) to bolster the Eagles' defense at the net and help the team to a regular-season title and the conference tournament's top seed.

After leading EKU to its first 20-win season since 2014, Johnna Bazzani was awarded the ASUN Coach of the Year accolade. This year's squad went 21-7 during the regular season, including an 11-5 mark during conference play, and enters the ASUN Championship as the #3 seed. Sporting an 11-1 record inside Baptist Health Arena, the Colonels placed four individuals on the All-ASUN lineup. As a team, EKU ranks 10th in the nation for assists per set (13.14) while sitting 12th with 14.03 kills per set.


Player of the Year: Meg Mersman, Lipscomb
Defensive Player of the Year: Rocio Moro, North Florida
Setter of the Year: Sophia Hudepohl, Lipscomb
Freshman of the Year: Ella Chapman, FGCU
Coach of the Year: Johnna Bazzani, EKU

First Team All-ASUN
Juliana Lentz FGCU
Lily Tessier FGCU
Manu Johnsen** Kennesaw State
Sophia Hudepohl Lipscomb
Meg Mersman*** Lipscomb
Anna Katherine Griggs North Alabama
Rocio Moro**** North Florida
 
Second Team All-ASUN
Carson Ledford EKU
Sarah Mitchell EKU
Josie Schmitendorf EKU
AG Vandagriff EKU
Alexandra Zakutney FGCU
Emma Schurfranz*** Kennesaw State
Jada DiVita Lipscomb
 
Third Team All-ASUN
Ella Chapman FGCU
Courtney Jones Lipscomb
Delaney Smith Lipscomb
Maggie Sullivan North Alabama
Kailey McKnight North Florida
Sophia Groom Stetson
Anabelle Standish Stetson
 * Denotes number of career All-ASUN honors
 
ASUN All-Freshman Team
Ella Chapman FGCU
Maddie Hagan Bellarmine
Reese Burry FGCU
Alija Heins Jacksonville
Kourtney Brown Kennesaw State
Olivia Burrage Kennesaw State
Avery Markham North Alabama