The Big West Women’s Volleyball Player, Freshman and Defensive Player of the Week awards included a record-setting performance and a repeat winner.
Magill Collects Tournament MVP Honors
Hawai‘i junior Olivia Magill (Shoreline, Wash./University of Arizona) set a school record en route to being named the Big West Women’s Volleyball Player of the Week.
The 6-1 middle blocker also was selected Most Outstanding Player of the Hawaiian Airlines Wahine Volleyball Classic after averaging 3.38 kills and 1.92 blocks per set, while hitting a robust .440 (44-7-84) in three matches.
Her signature performance came in a four-set win over St. John’s, where she broke the Rainbow Wahine rally scoring record for blocks in a 4-set match with 12. Magill chipped in with 15 kills to secure the double-double, and hit .538 for the match with just one error in 26 attempts.
Magill opened the tournament by helping UH to a 4-set victory against New Mexico with 11 kills on .500 hitting, adding seven block assists. She had another strong performance in a 5-set heartbreaking defeat to No. 22 Oregon, delivering 18 kills on .333 hitting to go along with six blocks.
Others nominated: Holland Crenshaw (Cal State Fullerton); Sam Kaul (CSUN); Alex Reid (Long Beach State); Kaylin Squyres (UC Davis); Shelley Anderson (UC Irvine); Bri Holmes (UC Riverside); Britton Taylor (UC Santa Barbara)
Withers Repeats as Freshman Player of the Week
Cal State Fullerton outside hitter Niki Withers (Lakewood, Calif./Long Beach Poly HS) earned her second consecutive Big West Women’s Volleyball Freshman of the Week nod after leading the Titans offensively at the SDSU-USD 2014 Classic.
Withers led the charge, topping the team in kills in three of four matches as the Titans posted a 2-2 record. She recorded her second 20-kill performance of the year in a 4-set tournament-opening loss to Northwestern. Her most efficient effort came in a sweep of Brown, where she slammed 14 kills at a .286 clip while adding three block assists for the second match in a row.
Withers, who has posted double figure kills in all seven matches, added 11 kills against Villanova and 12 versus San Diego State. She averaged 3.80 kills per set and led the Titans with a total of 57 kills in 15 sets played.
Others nominated: Ashley Murray (Long Beach State); Dani Geiger (UC Irvine); Alex Gresham (UC Riverside); Chanel Hoffman (UC Santa Barbara); Kalei Greeley (Hawai‘i)
Jackson Enters Long Beach State Top 10 For Career Digs
Senior Tyler Jackson (Long Beach, Calif./Lakewood HS) anchored the defensive effort to help Long Beach State to a 4-0 record at the Mizuno Invitational, leading her to Big West Women’s Volleyball Defensive Player of the Week honors.
The 5-8 libero averaged 4.93 digs per set as the 49ers downed Idaho (3-1), Campbell (3-0), Army (3-0) and San Francisco (3-1). She scooped up 69 digs for the week, giving her 1,070 for her career and inserting her at No. 10 on the school’s career list.
Jackson led the 49ers with 24 digs against the Dons and had 18 more versus the Vandals for her two best statistical efforts during the tournament. She had double-digit digs in all four contests.
Others nominated: McKenna Painton (Cal State Fullerton); Kelcie Randazzo (CSUN); Megan Lancaster (UC Davis); Arden Davis (UC Irvine); Maddie Hubbell (UC Riverside); Sarah Mendoza (Hawai‘i)