United Athletic Conference

 

NM State redshirt junior outside hitter Savannah Davison and Dixie State sophomore libero Mykenna Nelson have been named the Western Athletic Conference Offensive and Defensive Volleyball Players of the Week, respectively, for the week of Feb. 10 through Feb. 16.

 

Davison, a Toronto, Ontario native, was dominant this week as she led the Aggies to a sweep of Grand Canyon and helped NM State collect its 26th consecutive WAC win. On the week, Davison averaged 4.71 kills per set on .378 hitting while also finishing with just five errors on 74 swings over the two matches. Sh­­e led the Aggies to a four-set win on Monday in which she recorded 15 kills on .389 hitting. In Tuesday's three-set win, the Canadian posted 6.00 kills per set while hitting at a .368 clip. On the season, Davison is averaging 3.38 kills per set on .247 hitting.

 

Nelson, a Phoenix, Ariz. native, helped lead the Trailblazers to a pair of wins over California Baptist this week. Against the Lancers, she averaged 5.71 digs per set, including a 24-dig outing on Monday. Nelson backed up that performance with 16 digs in just three sets to help Dixie State pick up the sweep of CBU. On the season, Nelson averages 4.17 digs per set in 23 sets.

 

Other offensive nominees included: Dixie State's Jordyn Nelson was a force on the offense, averaging 12.14 assists per set, including a 51-assist showing in a four-set victory over California Baptist… Grand Canyon's Kaira Moss averaged 2.29 kills per set on .375 hitting while tallying 2.9 points per set against NM State.

 

Other defensive nominees included: Grand Canyon's K.J. Adams recorded 3.57 digs per set and a pair of service aces as the Lopes traveled to El Paso, Texas to take on NM State… NM State's Darian Markham notched 33 total digs to average 4.71 digs per set during the Aggies' sweep of GCU.

 

Entering week five, NM State is dominating at the net as they lead the WAC in hitting percentage (.296), kills (14.81) and blocks (2.62). The Aggies also lead the conference in assists (13.76) and opponent hitting percentage (.141). Meanwhile, Utah Valley continues to sit atop the league in service aces (1.85) and Grand Canyon paces the conference in digs (18.80).

 

Individually, Grand Canyon's Yeny Murillo leads the WAC in kills (4.75) and points per set (5.00) while fellow Lope Hannah Eskes is tops in hitting percentage (.389). GCU's Klaire Mitchell records the most assists per set at 11.05 and her teammate K.J. Adams leads the conference in digs (5.35). Utah Valley has the league's top blocker in Kendra Nock as she averages 1.40 blocks per set. Lastly, California Baptist's Tesa Oaks posts the most service aces per set at 0.62.

 

NM State's Natalie Mikels recorded her 2,000th career assist in an Aggie uniform on Feb. 16 against GCU. The senior setter from Jenks, Okla., posted 20 assists against the Lopes to join the 2,000-assist club. She currently has 132 assists on the year, giving her 2,002 assists for her career.

 

Utah Valley's Kazna Tanuvasa placed herself among elite company as she tallied her 1,000th kill as a Wolverine. The junior outside hitter eclipsed the mark after recording 18 kills against No. 16 BYU, giving her 1,007 for her career. With 65 total kills on the season, she now sits at 1,038 in just her junior year at UVU.

 

It was apparent that both Dixie State and Tarleton were ready for the jump as both squads dominated in their Division I debuts. The Trailblazers took down Southern Utah in straight sets, winning 25-18, 25-21, 26-24. Meanwhile, the Texans also won in three sets, taking down Louisiana Tech in just three sets (25-21, 25-23, 25-16) in their season opener.

 

The WAC volleyball coaches selected NM State to win the WAC regular-season crown this spring. Coming off back-to-back WAC Tournament Championships, the Aggies received eight of the nine first-place votes and 64 total points to earn the top spot in the poll. Grand Canyon earned the remaining first-place vote to finish in second place with 55 points, followed by UT Rio Grande Valley which slid into third with 48 points. California Baptist picked up 42 points as they were selected fourth while UT Rio Grande Valley finished closely behind with 40 points to claim fifth. Dixie State, Tarleton and Seattle U each collected 21 points to form a three-way tie for sixth while Chicago State rounded out the poll with 12 points.

 

NM State and Grand Canyon had the most players named to the preseason All-WAC team as both squads garnered three spots. Joining NM State's Savannah Davison on the preseason team are fellow Aggies Julianna Salanoa and Lia Mosher, Grand Canyon's Kaira Moss, Klaire Mitchell and Annabelle Kubinski, Utah Valley's Kazna Tarawhiti and Seren Jardine, UT Rio Grande Valley's Sarah Cruz and Samaret Caraballo, California Baptist's Sydney Marks and Christine Graf and Seattle U's Eve Kerschenbaum and Tijana Milojevic.

 

Of the seven First Team All-WAC players in 2019, four return for the season – spring 2021 Preseason Player of the Year Savannah Davison of NM State and teammate Julianna Salanoa along with Utah Valley's Kazna Tarawhiti and Grand Canyon's Kaira Moss.

 

Just two of the seven second team honorees return as GCU teammates Annabelle Kubinski and Klaire Mitchell are back.

 

Four of the six All-Freshman Team honorees from a year ago return – Grand Canyon teammates Hannah Eskes and Mitchell, California Baptist's Christine Graf and Victoire Nama of UT Rio Grande Valley. 

 

The Spring 2021 WAC Volleyball Tournament will be held April 1-3 at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, N.M. and will include all six eligible teams.

 

The NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship 48-team bracket will be announced Sunday, April 4. The bracket will consist of 32 automatic qualifiers and 16 at-large teams. The final site of the 2020 NCAA Championship will be the CHI Health Center Omaha in Omaha, Neb. Semifinals will be held April 22 while the championship will be held on April 24.