HILLSDALE, Mich.--  With the tournament semifinals scheduled to take place later today, the Great Midwest All-Conference Volleyball teams and individual awards were announced Friday morning following a vote by the league’s coaches.
 
The coaches’ vote determined a total of 24 student-athletes on this year’s all-conference teams. Each team consists of (2) outside/right hitters, (2) middle blockers, (1) setter, and (1) defensive specialists/ libero followed by (6) wild car selections of the highest vote getters regardless of position.
 
Individual awards include Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year, Coach of the Year, and the Great Midwest Elite 26 Award winner.
 
The Elite 26 Award winner was announced as Findlay’s Taylor Thompson, a junior outside hitter studying physical therapy. The Elite 26 Award recognizes the true essence of the student-athlete at the conference championship level in his or her sport while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers.
 
Hillsdale’s Alli Wiese was voted Great Midwest Player of the Year. Wiese was named the Great Midwest Athlete of the Week on four separate occasions this season as a Libero. She leads the league in digs per set at 5.03 and has totaled 545 this season. Wiese also posted the conference’s second-highest service aces per set at .55.
 
Cedarville’s Madelyn Hensley is the Freshman of the Year. She is second in the conference in kills per set with 3.61 through 116 sets. Hensely helped the Yellow Jackets advance to the conference tournament as the No. 8 seed. In her college debut, Hensely averaged 3.93 points per set, the third highest in the league.
 
Walsh’s Brett Holt was voted by his peers as the 2023 Coach of the Year. In his first year, Holt led the Cavaliers to an 18-0 start and first divisional title since 2018. Holt and the Cavaliers cracked the Midwest Regional rankings for the first time in the Division II era and entered the AVCA rankings for the first time in program history. Walsh finished the season 25-6, their first 20 win season since 2017. The Cavaliers landed six student-athletes on the all-conference list, including first-team honoree Keanna Avery. Avery, an outside hitter, averaged 3.10 digs and 0.47 blocks per set.
 
Hillsdale, the No.1 overall seed and this year’s host, landed a trio of student-athletes as first-team all-conference selections. In addition to the Player of Year in Alli Wiese, Maizie Brown and Marilyn Popplewell were also voted first-team. Popplewell ranks fifth in the conference in points with 3.81 per set and kills at 3.20. Brown holds the league’s highest hitting percentage at .373, including 216 kills on 461 total attacks. The Chargers are set to face No. 4 Findlay in the semifinal match.
 
The Oilers are led by first-team all-conference members Emma White and Kenzie Hoelscher. White leads the conference with 10.53 assists per match. White’s 10.53 assists rank 24^th in all of Division II. Hoelscher, a sophomore outside hitter, registered a .355 hitting percentage, including 211 kills on 448 attacks. Findlay landed a total of four student-athletes as all-conference selections.
 
Ashland, the South Division Regular Season Champions, were led by Katie Thompson and Makenna Belcher, both voted to the first-team. Thompson averaged 4.70 digs per set as a defensive specialist. Belcher posted the league’s third best kills per set at 3.45. Thompson and Belcher led the Eagles to a 22-10 record.
 
Individuals from Northwood, Tiffin, and Trevecca round out the all-conference first team. Sydney Hasenfratz of Northwood had a dominant year, earning athlete of the week honors three times. Hasenfratz helped Northwood earn the No. 5 seed, averaging the league’s second-highest hitting percentage at .359. Trevecca’s Emma Titus has the highest amount of kills in the Great Midwest this season with 406 (3.72/set).
 
Tiffin’s Kenedi Goon also earned first-team honors after leading the Dragons to an upset over No. 3 Walsh to advance to the semifinals. Goon totaled 304 kills on 835 attacks and a .247 hitting percentage. Tiffin will face No. 7 Ohio Dominican on Thursday at 7:30 P.M. ET.
 
A full list of honorees can be found HERE.