Summit League Volleyball Year-End Honors

INDIANAPOLIS – Four North Dakota State University volleyball players were honored by The Summit League on Thursday, Nov. 21, following the conclusion of the regular season. Sophomore outside hitter Jenni Fassbender was named to the All-Summit League Team, and freshmen Emily Miron, Emily Milligan and Monica Claxton claimed three of the seven spots on the league’s Freshmen Team.

Fassbender leads the Bison with 290 kills this season, and she ranked fourth in the league with 3.72 kills per set in league play. Her average of 4.3 points per set was also fourth-best in the league. This is Fassbender’s first all-league honor.

Miron, who also earned honorable mention all-league recognition as a middle hitter, ranked third among Summit League freshmen with 2.76 kills per set in league play. She posted a .313 attack percentage in Summit League matches – the eighth-highest in the league – and led the Bison with 55 total blocks on the year.

Milligan finished second in The Summit League with an average of 3.98 digs per set in league matches. Her 277 total digs lead the Bison this season.

Claxton averaged 10.67 assists per set to rank fourth in the league. She also ranked top-15 in the league in digs per set and was second on NDSU with 214 total digs. Claxton recorded seven double-doubles on the season.

South Dakota’s Kendall Kritenbrink garnered Player of the Year honors, while the IUPUI duo of Beth Howard and Alexis Meeks earned Defensive Player of the Year and Setter of the Year, respectively. Denver’s Nola Basey was tabbed the Freshman of the Year and IUPUI’s Steve Payne was named Coach of the Year.

The 2013 Summit League Volleyball Championship begins Friday, on the campus of IUPUI, with six teams participating. No. 3 South Dakota faces No. 6 Western Illinois in the first quarterfinal match on Friday, at 4:30 p.m. (ET). The second quarterfinal match pits No. 4 Fort Wayne against No. 5 North Dakota State at 7 p.m. (ET). In Saturday’s semifinal matches, No. 2 Denver will face the winner of South Dakota/Western Illinois at 4:30 p.m. (ET) and No. 1 IUPUI is set to take on the winner of Fort Wayne/North Dakota State at 7 p.m. (ET).

The tournament concludes with Sunday’s championship match at 2 p.m. (ET). The winner claims The Summit League’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

2013 All-Summit League Volleyball Teams

All-League
Kelsey Biltoft, South Dakota, So., MH
Moriah Fair, IUPUI, Sr., OH
Jenni Fassbender, North Dakota State, So., OH
Kaitlyn Hickey, IUPUI, So., OH
Beth Howard, IUPUI, Jr., DS
Colleen King, Denver, Sr., RS
Kendall Kritenbrink, South Dakota, Jr., OH
Tori Kroll, South Dakota, Sr., S
Alexis Meeks, IUPUI, Sr., S
Brea Muhle, Denver, Sr., MH
Hailie Ripley, Fort Wayne, So., MH
Emily Spencer, Fort Wayne, Jr. OH

Honorable Mention
Nola Basey, Denver, Fr., OH
Moni Corrujedo, Denver, Fr., OH
Ann Miller, Western Illinois, Jr., OH
Emily Miron, North Dakota State, Fr., MH
Megan Schmale, Omaha, So., OH
Sarah Schmid, Denver, So., MH

Freshmen Team
Nola Basey, Denver, OH
Monica Claxton, North Dakota State, S
Moni Corrujedo, Denver, OH
Tiara Gibson, South Dakota State, MH
Emily Milligan, North Dakota State, DS
Emily Miron, North Dakota State, MH
Logan Walling, IUPUI, MH

Player of the Year
Kendall Kritenbrink, South Dakota

Defensive Player of the Year
Beth Howard, IUPUI

Setter of the Year
Alexis Meeks, IUPUI

Freshman of the Year
Nola Basey, Denver

Coach of the Year
Steve Payne, IUPUI