After a record-setting week from the service line, then third-ranked UC Irvine’s Hilir Henno picked up Big West Offensive Player of the Week. It marks a fourth career offensive award, and 10th overall weekly honor from the league. 

Henno started the week with a double-double with 17 kills and 11 digs with a pair of aces and five blocks in a five-set loss against George Mason on Tuesday. 

Wednesday against Saint Francis, the junior outside hitter recorded two aces to rise to the top of The Big West career record books, bettering UCSB alumni Ryan Wilcox’s record of 135. Henno hit .429 against the Red Flash with 16 kills in the sweep.  

The product of Pornichet, France, rounded out the week tying a UCI and Big West match record of nine aces in the 3-1 victory over Princeton on Saturday. For the week, Henno averaged 3.67 kills, 5.17 points, 1.08 aces, 1.50 digs and 0.67 blocks. 

Henno is currently second in the nation in aces per set with 1.083 and sixth in points per set at 5.17. 

Mason Briggs anchored No. 2 Long Beach State's defense to a pair of season-opening wins to claim a fifth career Big West Defensive Player of the Week honor, after taking home two distinctions apiece in each of the last two seasons. 

The senior from Valencia, Calif., averaged 3.00 digs per set, while helping limit opponents to a .122 attack percentage in home wins against LIU and Saint Francis.  

Briggs recorded double-digit digs in both matches with 10 digs in a sweep of Long Island on Friday night, before collecting 11 digs in a 3-1 win over Saint Francis on Saturday night.   

The three-time All-American is leading The Big West and third nationally in digs per set after the first week on the court in 2024 for the Beach. 

Making a collegiate debut with aplomb, Louis Sakanoko of then No. 4 Hawai’i earned Big West Freshman of the Week honors after a two-match series sweep of Emmanuel. 

The outside hitter tallied two kills, three aces, and and three digs in Wednesday’s series opener. 

Making the start on Friday, Sakanoko tied the program’s single-match record with nine aces in team's straight-set win in the series finale. The Paris, France, native also recorded eight kills on .385 hitting with two digs and a block in the match.  

The nine-ace effort is tied for second in NCAA Division I-II so far this season, matching Hilir Henno of UC Irvine for the runner-up spot in the current national rankings.