INDIANAPOLIS – Nationally ranked Hillsdale and Walsh were selected for the first series of Great Midwest Athletic Conference Volleyball Players of the Week honors from the North Division.
North Division Offensive Player of the Week
Olivia Maczuzak
Walsh
Outside Hitter
RS Junior
Concord, OH (Riverside HS)
Maczuzak was a first team all-conference performer in the spring at a very deep position while helping lead the Cavaliers into the championship semifinals.
She was off to a blazing start on opening weekend as the Cavaliers defeated Daemen and East Stroudsburg before taking West Liberty and Wayne State to five-set finals in tourney action in Michigan.
The redshirt junior averaged 3.94 kills per set and 3.33 digs per set while tallying a total of 71 kills and averaging 4.25 points per set. She had 20 or more kills in three of those four contests vs. East Stroudsburg, Wayne State and West Liberty and also added 22 digs vs. West Liberty on Saturday.
Maczuzak currently leads all players in the league with her kills per set numbers and is third in points.
North Division Defensive Player of the Week
Allyssa Van Wienen
Hillsdale
Middle Blocker
Senior
Grand Rapids, MI (Grand Rapids Christian HS)
The Chargers were ranked 13th in the AVCA Preseason Coaches Poll going into the Ferris State Invitational and faced tough competition vs. No. 9 Oklahoma Baptist, No. 21 UMSL, and a pair of programs receiving votes in Saint Leo and Winona State.
Van Wienen produced at her All-American rate with 1.38 blocks per set, league-leading totals through the first weekend of non-conference action.
She also currently leads the conference in 4.38 points per set and ranks in the top 10 in both hitting percentage and kills.
The senior middle recorded six blocks against UMSL and Saint Leo while leading the team with 13 kills (on just 18 swings) put down against the Lions while hitting .722.
Day two of the invite was a learning experience early in the fall for Hillsdale with a pair of four-set defeats. Van Wiene still led the Chargers in kills and blocks vs. Oklahoma Baptist and finished with 12 and 5, respectively, against Winona State.