Penn State, Michigan State, Maryland And Purdue Claim Weekly Volleyball Honors

ROSEMONT, Ill.  (Sept. 5, 2023) – The Big Ten Conference has announced this week’s Volleyball Weekly Awards for the week of August 28 – September 3.
 

Offensive Player of the Week
Jess Mruzik, Penn State
Sr. – Outside Hitter – Livonia, Mich. – Farmington Hills Mercy – Major: Master’s in Business Adminstration

• Hit .345 with 53 kills, 14 digs, eight blocks and three aces as No. 12 Penn State went 3-0 at the PSU Invitational with wins over No. 22 Western Kentucky, Colgate and James Madison

• Reached 1,000 career kills in the second set of the win over Colgate

• Closed the tournament with a 26-kill performance against James Madison, the most by a Nittany Lion in a match since 2018, and the program’s top mark in a four-set match sicne the 25-point rally scoring era began in 2008

• Last Penn State Player of the Week: Kashauna Williams (9/12/22)

Defensive Player of the Week
Nalani Iosia, Michigan State
Sr. – Libero – Long Beach, Calif. – Redondo Union – Major: Sociology

• Named the Most Valuable Player of the inaugural Kathy DeBoer Invitational where the Spartans went 3-0 on the weekend

• Recorded 20+ digs in two-of-three matches, averaging 5.22/set

• Last Michigan State Defensive Player of the Week: Jayme Cox (9/3/19)

Setter of the Week
Sydney Dowler, Maryland
Sr. – Setter – Oconomowoc, Wis. – Green Hope – Major: Cell Biology & Genetics

• Led the Terrapins in assists in all three matches at the Kristin Dickmann Invitational, averaging 10.8/set

• Became the sixth player in Maryland history to reach the 2,500 assist milestone

• Last Maryland Setter of the Week: Sydney Dowler (10/17/22)

Freshman of the Week
Chloe Chicoine, Purdue
Fr. – Outside Hitter – Lafayette, Ind. – McCutcheon – Major: Business Management and Kinesiology

• Recorded back-to-back double-doubles to help lead No. 20 Purdue to wins over No. 23 Kansas and No. 19 Marquette

• Led all players with 21 kills in the win over Kansas, and ranked second on the team with 2.30 digs/set during the weekend

• Last Purdue Freshman of the Week: Eva Hudson (11/28/22)

2023 Big Ten Volleyball Players of the Week  

Aug. 28
O: Emily Londot – Ohio State
D: Kylie Murr - Minnesota
S: Mia Tuman – Ohio State
F: Harper Murray – Nebraska

Sept. 5
O: Jess Mruzik – Penn State
D: Nalani Iosia – Michigan State
S: Sydney Dowler - Maryland
F: Chloe Chicoine - Purdue

Big Ten Conference (bigten.org) is an association of world-class universities whose member institutions share a common mission of research, graduate, professional and undergraduate teaching, and public service. Founded in 1896, Big Ten Conference has sustained a comprehensive set of shared practices and policies that enforce the priority of academics in the lives of students competing in intercollegiate athletics and emphasize the values of integrity, fairness, and competitiveness. The broad-based programs of the 14 Big Ten Conference institutions will provide over $200 million in direct financial support to more than 9,800 students for more than 11,000 participation opportunities on 350 teams in 42 different sports. Big Ten Conference sponsors 28 official conference sports, 14 for men and 14 for women, including the addition of men’s ice hockey and men’s and women’s lacrosse since 2013. 

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