IRVINE, Calif. - The Big West revealed its 2023 postseason honors on the eve of the 2023 Outrigger Big West Women’s Volleyball Championship, with regular-season champion UC Santa Barbara headlining the individuals receiving hardware.
The Gauchos nabbed three major awards with senior outside hitter Michelle Ohwobete claiming Big West Player of the Year honors. The product of Oakland, Calif., enters the postseason leading the squad in kills (3.61) and points (4.25) per set with both numbers ranking second in The Big West. The 2021 Big West Freshman of the Year, Ohwobete is now a three-time All-Big West first team honoree and the first Gaucho to earn Player of the Year since Rebecca Seraceno in 2009.
Teammate Macall Peed picked up Libero of the Year honors for consecutive seasons, both times the award has been bestowed. Peed leads the league in digs per set with 4.59, collecting 514 total digs on the season thus far. From the service line, the senior from San Diego, Calif., has added 35 aces on the year. Peed anchors the top defensive squad in The Big West, as the Gauchos allow opponents to hit .163 while the front line denies 2.79 attacks per set, good for the eighth-best blocking numbers in NCAA Division I.
Peed and Ohwobete are joined on the All-Big West first team by fellow senior outside hitter Briana McKnight. The product of Scottsdale, Ariz., is second on the team in points (3.33) and digs (2.96) per set, while finding the floor on 40 serves to lead the Gauchos. The second team list includes senior Tasia Farmer with middle blocker Andi Kreiling picking up honorable mention.
Rounding out the UCSB award winners is first-year head coach Matt Jones. The Harvard graduate has guided the Gauchos to a 27-3 overall record and a .900 winning percentage, fourth-best in the country. This is the best league record for UC Santa Barbara since the 2002 season when the Gauchos went 18-0 and went on to advance to the NCAA Regional finals.
Setter of the Year distinction belongs to Long Beach State’s Zayna Meyer. The redshirt sophomore averages 10.13 assists per set to lead the Beach offense that is tops in the conference in team hitting percentage at .249. Along with directing the offense, Meyer has put down 52 total blocks on the year, while digging 249 balls for the defense with 30 aces. Mayer is the lone underclassman to earn first-team recognition.
Along with Meyer, middle blocker Katie Kennedy landed on the first team, a second such career honor after also being placed on the first team in 2021. A graduate student from Hood River, Ore., Kennedy averages 2.39 kills per set on an effective .352 hitting and has compiled 66 total blocks.
Oregon transfer Elise Agi and Natalie Glenn earned second-team distinction. Agi leads the team with 3.59 kills per set while Glenn contributes 2.72 kills per set for the offense. The junior duo are 1-2 in The Big West in aces per set, accounting for 68 aces on the year for the league’s best service squad which averages 1.79 per set.
Last season’s Player of the Year and Big West offensive leader Amber Igiede of Hawai’i makes a fourth-consecutive appearance on the All-Big West First Team. Igiede, a middle blocker from Baton Rouge, La., puts down an average of 3.74 kills per set on .396 hitting while adding 1.09 blocks per set for the Rainbow Wahine. Igiede’s hitting percentage is good for 24th nationally.
Two UH players landed on the second team, with setter Kate Lang and middle blocker Kennedi Evans claiming spots. The Big West award is a first for Evans, who transferred in from Utah and is playing a first full season on the court for the ‘Bows after competing in just seven matches a year ago. Evans averages 2.15 points per set and is second on the team in blocking, with 81 total blocks on the year. Lang leads The Big West with 10.48 assists per set and has compiled an impressive 3,093 assists in three seasons for UH. First-year outside hitter Tali Hakas makes an appearance on the All-Freshman team, marking the fourth straight season with at least one member on the listing.
Tommi Stockham is representing Cal Poly on the All-Big West first team for the third consecutive year. The redshirt junior from Las Vegas, Nev., averages 3.21 kills per set and has put away a league-high 46 service aces. This season, Stockham surpassed the 1,000-kill tally, entering the postseason with 1,371 kills including a freshman campaign at Indiana. The outside hitter currently sits at 99 career service aces, needing one more to reach the century mark.
Fellow Mustang outside Lizzy Markovska was named to the second team, and the redshirt sophomore is second on the squad to Stockham in both kills (2.93) and points (3.42) per set.
UC San Diego junior Ava McInnes rounds out the first team after bumping up from the 2022 second team. A product of Tustin, Calif., McInnes is second in the conference in kills per set with 3.70 to lead the Tritons and is second on the squad in digs per set (2.09). Playing double duty with times in the rotation at both setter and opposite hitter, Lauren Brooker was named to the All-Freshman team with averages of 3.60 assists, 1.84 kills and 2.37 points per set.
UC Davis offensive leader Olivia Utterback secured a spot on the All-Big West second team with team-bests of 2.96 kills and 3.63 points per set for the Aggies. The youthful squad boasting just one senior sees a pair on the All-Freshman team with Ally Chandler and Reese Diersbock each earning distinction.
Freshman of the Year honors belong to UC Irvine setter Nicole Feliciano. Hailing from Laguna Niguel, Calif., Feliciano leads the Anteaters with 7.83 assists per set, good for third in the league during the rookie campaign. Also joining Feliciano on the All-Freshman team are Cal State Fullerton’s Ameena Campbell and Breklyn Pulling of Cal State Bakersfield. Pulling is the first-ever Roadrunner to dot the freshman list.
The first edition of The Big West Women’s Volleyball Championship gets underway Wednesday from Walter Pyramid on the campus of Long Beach State. Fourteen of the 15 members of the All-Big West first and second teams will be in action this week competing for the league’s automatic berth into the 2023 NCAA Division I Championship field. Single session tickets went on sale this morning, with all-session tickets available starting at $19. Make plans to watch The Big West’s top players take to the court and secure your seats today.
| The Big West 2023 Women's Volleyball All-Conference Team |
| Player of the Year: |
Michelle Ohwobete, UC Santa Barbara |
| Setter of the Year: |
Zayna Meyer, Long Beach State |
| LIbero of the Year: |
Macall Peed, UC Santa Barbara |
| Freshman of the Year: |
Nicole Feliciano, UC Irvine |
| Coach of the Year: |
Matt Jones, UC Santa Barbara |
| All-Big West First Team |
|
|
| Student-Athlete |
Year |
Position |
Institution |
Hometown |
| Amber Igiede |
Sr. |
MB |
Hawai’i |
Baton Rouge, La. |
| Katie Kennedy |
Gr. |
MB |
Long Beach State |
Hood River, Ore. |
| Ava McInnes |
Jr. |
OH |
UC San Diego |
Tustin, Calif. |
| Briana McKnight |
Sr. |
OH |
UC Santa Barbara |
Scottsdale, Ariz. |
| Zayna Meyer |
R-So. |
S |
Long Beach State |
Wheaton, Ill |
| Michelle Ohwobete |
Sr. |
OH |
UC Santa Barbara |
Oakland, Calif. |
| Macall Peed |
Sr. |
L |
UC Santa Barbara |
San Diego, Calif. |
| Tommi Stockham |
R-Jr. |
OH |
Cal Poly |
Las Vegas, Nev. |
| All-Big West Second Team |
|
|
| Student-Athlete |
Year |
Position |
Institution |
Hometown |
| Elise Agi |
Jr. |
OH |
Long Beach State |
San Francisco, Calif. |
| Kennedi Evans |
R-Sr. |
MB |
Hawai’i |
Twin Falls, Idaho |
| Tasia Farmer |
Sr. |
OPP |
UC Santa Barbara |
Highland, Utah |
| Natalie Glenn |
Jr. |
OH |
Long Beach State |
Southlake, Texas |
| Kate Lang |
Jr. |
S |
Hawai’i |
Keller, Texas |
| Lizzy Markovska |
R-So. |
OH |
Cal Poly |
Menifee, Calif. |
| Olivia Utterback |
Jr. |
OPP |
UC Davis |
Plainfield, Ind. |
| Honorable Mention: Caylen Alexander (Hawai’i); Kameron Bacon (Long Beach State); Carisa Barron (CSUN); Emme Bullis (Cal Poly); Paula Guersching (Hawai’i); Campbell Jensen (UC Irvine); Andi Kreiling (UC Santa Barbara); Emily McDaniel (UC San Diego); Ava Palm (Cal State Bakersfield); Hunter Riedl (UC Irvine); Jasmine Saran (UC San Diego); Isabella Scarlett (UC Irvine); Mylei Vargas-Deason (UC Riverside) |
| Big West All-Freshman Team |
|
|
| Student-Athlete |
Position |
Institution |
Hometown |
| Lauren Brooker |
S/OPP |
UC San Diego |
Calabasas, Calif. |
| Ameena Campbell |
OH |
Cal State Fullerton |
Lawndale, Calif. |
| Ally Chandler |
MB |
UC Davis |
Loomis, Calif. |
| Reese Diersbock |
OH |
UC Davis |
Kailua, Hawai’i |
| Nicole Feliciano |
S/RS |
UC Irvine |
Laguna Niguel, Calif. |
| Tali Hakas |
OH |
Hawai’i |
Kfar Saba, Israel |
| Breklyn Pulling |
MB |
Cal State Bakersfield |
Highlands Ranch, Colo. |