WEEKLY HONORS

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Lani Mason, Delaware

Senior | Outside Hitter | Chester, Virginia / Matoaca HS

Mason recorded one of the more impressive stat lines in NCAA Volleyball this season with 38 kills and 24 digs in Delaware’s five-set victory over Charleston. She led the Blue Hens to their eighth straight victory, and Delaware improved to 5-0 in conference play. 

The senior outside hitter swung at a .324 clip and established new career-highs with her kill and dig totals. 

With her 38-kill performance, Mason set a new program record, which she just set two weeks ago. This is Mason's third 30+ kill performance this season, and she holds two of the top-5 single-match kill totals in the NCAA this fall. 

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Lydia Wiers, Towson

Senior | Middle Blocker | Willard, Ohio / Willard HS

Wiers tallied 2.43 blocks per set to lead a defensive effort that saw Towson limit North Carolina A&T to a .114 team hitting percentage in a pair of wins for the Tigers. 

Lydia Wiers Named CAA Defensive Player of the Week for Second Time This Season🐯
📰:https://t.co/Wyxv9bqBtu#GohTigers x #UnitedWeRoar x #NCAAVB

— Back to Back to Back CAA Champs (@Towson_VB) October 3, 2022

Wiers started the weekend with a match-high eight blocks, as Towson held the Aggies to a .041 hitting percentage in a straight-set victory. In addition, she added six kills on a .444 hitting percentage in the effort. 

In the weekend finale, Wiers tallied a match-high nine blocks in a four-set win for Towson, as the Tigers extended the nation’s longest active winning streak to 16 matches.

ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

Kali Moore, Stony Brook

Freshman | Outside Hitter | Brooklyn, New York / Park Slope Collegiate

Moore helped Stony Brook to its first conference win in CAA Volleyball, averaging 3.75 kills per set and 2.25 digs per set in a weekend split against William & Mary. 

On Sunday, Moore recorded her seventh double-double this season, tallying 15 kills and 10 digs, as the Seawolves earned a five-set victory over the Tribe. 

On Saturday, she opened the weekend with 15 kills on a .393 hitting percentage and added eight digs despite a setback to William & Mary. 

In addition to her seven double-doubles, Moore has reached double-figure kills in nine matches this season, including four of her last five.  

CONFERENCE NOTES

THREE UNBLEMISHED IN CAA PLAY 

• Three teams have yet to drop a CAA contest this fall, with Delaware, Hofstra and Towson beginning 6-0 through the first three weeks of conference play.  

BATTLE FOR THE TOP SPOT

• Two of the top three teams in the conference standings will get together this weekend in Newark, Delaware. Towson travels to Delaware, and the teams will battle to stay atop the CAA standings. 

Towson has dropped just five sets all season, maintaining a 16-0 overall record and 6-0 mark in CAA play. 

Meanwhile, Delaware has opened conference play 6-0 and is riding a nine-match winning streak. The Blue Hens look to end a 10-match losing streak to the Tigers, who own a 47-39 advantage in the all-time series that dates back to 1976. 

CAJIC NAMED NATIONAL POTW

• Towson’s Nina Cajic received National recognition on Sept. 27, being named the Game Changer/AVCA DI National Player of the Week. The honor comes after Cajic recorded 5.33 kills per set on a .698 hitting percentage in back-to-back wins over Stony Brook that extended Towson’s winning streak to 14 matches. 

STRINGING WINS TOGETHER

• Three teams will enter this week with winning streaks of at least six matches. Towson has the nation’s longest active winning streak, having won 16 straight to begin the season, while Delaware is one of 11 teams in the country with at least nine consecutive victories. 

Additionally, Hofstra has won six matches in a row to begin conference play, which is top-20 in the NCAA amongst active winning streaks. 

FINAL FOUR 

• Towson is one of four remaining teams undefeated in all NCAA Division I Volleyball. The Tigers are the lone team with more than 15 wins but are joined by Auburn (14-0), No. 23 UCF (12-0) and No. 1 Texas (11-0) as the teams yet to lose this season. 

BIG TIME TIGERS

• Towson continued its hot start to the season, improving to 6-0 in CAA play with a pair of victories over North Carolina A&T. The Tigers have caught the nation’s eye as Towson received votes four straight weeks in the AVCA top-25 poll.  

• Among the Tigers’ 10 non-conference wins is a victory over No. 7 Pittsburgh on Sept. 10, marking Towson’s first victory over a ranked opponent in program history. It was the second straight week the Tigers took down a Power Five foe, having defeated Rutgers on Sept. 3.

TEAM NOTES

Charleston

• Charleston's schedule was modified due to hurricane Ian, pushing Saturday's contest to Monday. The Cougars fell to Delaware in five sets Sunday, before a straight-set defeat at the hands of the Blue Hens on Monday afternoon. 

• Gabi Bailey surpassed 500 career kills Sunday, recording 13 in the contest. The senior outside hitter added 12 digs to tally her fifth double-double this season. 

• On Sunday, Anna Smith paced Charleston with 15 kills, marking her third double-figure performance over the past four matches. She also added nine digs and one block in the effort.

Delaware 

• Delaware improved to 6-0 in conference action following a pair of wins over Charleston. The Blue Hens won a five-set victory on Sunday, followed by a straight-set victory on Monday.

• Lani Mason tallied an impressive double-double, setting career-highs with 38 kills and 24 digs on Sunday. With her 38-kill performance, Mason set a new program record, which she just set two weeks ago, and recorded her third 30+ kill performance this fall. 

Lani Mason of @Delaware_VB is the @gcsports / AVCA Div.I National Player of the Week.
Mason helped Delaware run its win streak to 8 in a five-set win at College of Charleston. The senior had a program-record 38 kills in the win and added 24 digs.
Release: https://t.co/GOUZLDFg2Q pic.twitter.com/9dyxSiWBdM

— AVCA (@AVCAVolleyball) October 4, 2022

• On Sunday, Lily Rogers recorded the first triple-double in CAA Volleyball this season with 11 kills, 19 assists and 17 digs. She followed the performance with a double-double, tallying 30 assists and 11 digs Monday afternoon.

Elon 

• Elon dropped a pair of hard-fought matches at Northeastern over the weekend. The Phoenix fell in four sets Saturday, before the Huskies edged them in five Sunday. 

• Leah Daniel paced Elon with 31 kills (3.44 per set) on a .310 hitting percentage. Daniel has double-digit kills in 10 of her last 11 matches and sits 17 shy of Elon’s all-time career record. 

• Haylie Clark recorded at least 40 assists in both matches for a total of 88 (9.78 per set) over the weekend. Clark tallied her ninth double-double this season with 47 assists and 10 digs in the weekend finale. She has 40 or more assists in sixth matches this fall, including three straight.

Hampton 

• Hampton continued conference play, dropping a pair of matches to Hofstra over the weekend. The Pirates fell in straight sets Saturday, before a four-set defeat Sunday. 

• Kristine Teivane made just her second and third appearances on the court this season, recording 18 kills (2.57 per set) and 16 digs (2.29 per set). The junior from Daugavpils, Latvia tallied her first double-double in a Hampton uniform with 11 kills and 12 digs in the weekend finale.  

• Julieta Campana recorded her third double-double this season, tallying 20 assists and 11 digs on Sunday. She now has double-digit assists in all nine matches this fall. 

Hofstra 

• Hofstra extended its winning streak to six matches and improved to 6-0 in CAA play with a pair of wins over Hampton. It marks the best start for the Pride in CAA play since 2014.

• Zyare Abdul-Rahim led Hofstra, totaling 34 kills (4.86 per set) on a .431 hitting percentage. She recorded double-figure kills in both matches and set career-highs with 21 kills, seven digs and a .485 hitting percentage in the weekend finale. 

• Beatriz Alves was impressive from her setter position, recording 83 assists (11.86 per set) and 19 digs (2.71 per set) over the matches. Alves tallied her sixth double-double this season, matching a career-high with 55 assists and adding 10 digs Sunday. 

North Carolina A&T

• North Carolina A&T dropped back-to-back contests to undefeated Towson, falling in four sets Sunday after a straight-set defeat Saturday. 

• Naiya Sawtelle continued to lead the Aggies, recording 25 kills (3.57 per set). She recorded her third double-double this season with a match-high 17 kills and 10 digs Sunday. 

• Hannah Howell also recorded a double-double in the effort Sunday. Howell tallied 14 kills and 11 digs while hitting .393 for her third double-double this fall.  

UNCW

• UNCW had the week to recuperate before the Seahawks travel to take on Northeastern this weekend. UNCW will carry a 1-3 CAA record into the weekend, coming off the bye.  

• Katie Lanz leads the Seahawks with 143 kills (2.98 per set) this season. Lanz has recorded 10 or more kills in seven matches this season, including three of her last four.  

• Annabelle Schall paces UNCW with 346 assists (7.21 per set) and ranks second on the team with 111 digs (2.31 per set) this fall. Schall has five double-doubles this season and has recorded 20 or more assists in nine matches.

Northeastern 

• Northeastern went 2-0, earning its first two CAA victories this fall with back-to-back wins over Elon. 

• Erica Staunton continued to impress, recording 50 kills (5.56 per set) on a .343 hitting percentage, while adding 21 digs (2.33 per set). She tallied back-to-back double-doubles with 25 kills and 11 digs, followed by 25 kills and 10 digs, marking three straight double-doubles. 

• Kayla Martin surpassed 1,000 career digs over the weekend with 15 on Sunday. She totaled 24 (2.33 per set) between the two matches and has reached double-figures in 10 contests this fall. 

Stony Brook 

• Stony Brook split its weekend series with William & Mary as the Seawolves took the weekend finale to earn the team's first CAA Volleyball victory. 

• Kali Moore contributed 30 kills (3.75 per set) and 18 digs (2.25 digs per set), including her seventh double-double this season. On Sunday, she tallied 15 kills and 10 digs to help Stony Brook in the winning effort. 

• Abby Campbell hit a blistering .429, recording 23 kills (2.88 per set), while adding eight blocks (1.00 per set). She hit .452 with 17 kills and five blocks in the Seawolves’ victory. 

Towson 

• Towson matched a program record for its best start to a season with a pair of wins over N.C. A&T, positioning the Tigers at 16-0. Towson maintains the nation’s longest active winning streak and is one of four remaining undefeated teams in the NCAA. 

• Lydia Wiers recorded 17 blocks, 2.43 per set, to help Towson limit the Aggies to a .114 team hitting percentage over the weekend. Wiers has 11 matches with at least four blocks this season and leads the CAA with 1.28 b/s. 

• Fay Bakodimou eclipsed 500 career kills with 16 kills (2.29 per set) over the weekend. 

On Saturday, she tallied a match-high nine, before surpassing the career mark with seven on Sunday. 

William & Mary 

• William & Mary split its third straight CAA series to begin conference play, earning a straight-set victory over Stony Brook on Saturday before falling in five sets on Sunday.  

• Taylor Burrell paced the Tribe attack with 32 kills (4.00 per set) and a red-hot .482 hitting percentage. Burrell reached double-figure kills in back-to-back matches for the first time this season, including a season-high 20 in the series finale. 

• Anna Porter led the William & Mary defense and recorded 39 digs (4.88 per set). She has double-digit digs in eight straight matches and 20 or more on five occasions this fall.