5 Bruins earn all-NSAA honors: Galas lands two major awards
Led by senior Olivia Galas, the Bellevue University volleyball squad landed four members on the all-North Star Athletic Association first team in an announcement made tonight in conjunction with the NSAA Volleyball Tournament. Galas was named both the NSAA Player of the Year and the NSAA Setter of the Year.
WATERTOWN, S.D. -- Led by senior Olivia Galas, the Bellevue University volleyball squad landed four members on the all-North Star Athletic Association first team in an announcement made tonight in conjunction with the NSAA Volleyball Tournament. Galas was honored as both the NSAA Player of the Year and the NSAA Setter of the Year.
Joining Galas on the first team were: senior outside hitter Sierra Athen, sophomore middle blocker Jacki Apel, and senior middle blocker Nicole Meyer. Junior outside hitter Allie Kerns earned second-team honors. Senior defensive specialist Brooklyn Hundt was Bellevue's NAIA Champions of Character representative.
Galas, who is now a five-time first-team all-NSAA selection and five-time NSAA Setter of the Year, leads the league and ranks seventh nationally with 11.0 assists per set. Among setters running a 5-1 offense, Galas leads the nation with 1.50 kills per set and a .340 hitting percentage. She is also averaging 2.99 digs per set and has amassed 56 total blocks.
Earlier this season, Galas became the school's all-time leader in career assists. The three-time first-team NAIA All-American has now recorded 6,500 career assists, 1,483 career digs, 716 kills, and 133 service aces.
Galas earned NSAA Setter of the Week honors ten times this season and was named the NAIA National Setter of the Week on Nov. 1.
Athen, who earned her fourth first-team all-NSAA honor, leads the Bruins with 330 kills and is second with 369 digs and 27 service aces. She has recorded 12 double-doubles on the season and was named the NSAA Attacker of the Week on Sept. 12. Athen recorded a season-high 20 kills on .487 hitting while adding 17 digs in BU's five-set win over No. 6-ranked Dakota Wesleyan on Sept. 1.
Earlier this season, Athen became Bellevue's all-time leader in career kills. She currently has 1,834 career kills to go along with 1,672 career digs.
Apel led the NSAA this season with a .303 hitting percentage and 1.29 blocks per set to garner the first 1st-team all-NSAA honor of her career. She was named to the second team in 2021.
Apel was named the NSAA Attacker of the Week on Oct. 3 after averaging 3.38 kills per set and a .396 hitting efficiency, along with 2.13 blocks per set in road wins over Dickinson State and Valley City State.
Apel currently leads the Bruins with 139 total blocks and is second with 271 kills.
Meyer is second on the team with 0.83 blocks per set and a .293 hitting percentage. Over the last six matches, Meyer is hitting .400 while averaging 2.05 kills and 1.29 blocks per set.
In BU's four-set upset over No. 7 Viterbo, Meyer recorded eight kills on .500 hitting while adding eight blocks.
Kerns is third on the Bruins' squad with 253 kills and fifth with 252 digs. She has also amassed 54 total blocks, 30 assists, and 22 service aces. Kerns has steadily improved throughout the season. In the second half of the conference slate, Kerns averaged 3.29 kills per set and hit at a .255 clip while also averaging 3.0 digs, 0.63 blocks, and 0.29 service aces per set.
The Bruins earned the No. 2 seed in NSAA Tournament, which will take place on Nov. 11-12 at the Watertown Civic Arena. BU received a first-round bye and will battle the winner of the 10 a.m. matchup between No. 3 Dakota State and No. 6 Presentation. That match will begin at 5 p.m. on Friday (Nov. 11) night.
2022 All-NSAA Volleyball Team
| First Team All-Conference | |||||
| Name | Position | Year | School | Hometown | |
| Olivia Galas | S | SR | Bellevue (Neb.) | Bellevue, Neb. | |
| Jada Mitchell | MH | FR | Viterbo (Wis.) | New Albin, Iowa | |
| Sierra Athen | OH | SR | Bellevue (Neb.) | Red Oak, Iowa | |
| Kenzie Winker | OH | JR | Viterbo (Wis.) | Holmen, Wis. | |
| Elora Passa | S/OH | JR | Mayville State (N.D.) | Barnesville, Minn. | |
| Jacki Apel | MB/RS | SO | Bellevue (Neb.) | Bellevue, Neb. | |
| Hannah Viet | MH | SR | Dakota State (S.D.) | Parker, S.D. | |
| Grace Rohde | RS | SO | Viterbo (Wis.) | Winona, Minn. | |
| Adrianna Reinhart | L | SR | Viterbo (Wis.) | Caledonia, Minn. | |
| Natalie Hadrava | L | SR | Mayville State (N.D.) | Laporte, Minn. | |
| Bailey Nelson | OH | SR | Valley City State (N.D.) | Argusville, N.D. | |
| Sydney Schell | OH | SO | Dakota State (S.D.) | Aberdeen, S.D. | |
| Grace Tobin | OH | JR | Presentation (S.D.) | Mason City, Iowa | |
| Nicole Meyer | MB | SR | Bellevue (Neb.) | Elmwood, Neb. | |
| Second Team All-Conference | |||||
| Name | Position | Year | School | Hometown | |
| Sadie Hansen | S | SO | Valley City State (N.D.) | Oakes, N.D. | |
| Lauryn Sobasky | S | SR | Viterbo (Wis.) | Inver Grove Heights, Minn. | |
| Kenzie Kidd | OH | JR | Waldorf (Iowa) | Roscoe, Ill. | |
| Ashley Pyburn | MH | SR | Mayville State (N.D.) | Nevis, Minn. | |
| Laura Babcock | L | SR | Presentation (S.D.) | Aberdeen, S.D. | |
| Peyton Groft | L | SR | Dakota State (S.D.) | Mellette, S.D. | |
| Allie Kerns | OH | JR | Bellevue (Neb.) | Omaha, Neb. | |
| Madalyn Groft | S | JR | Dakota State (S.D.) | Mellette, S.D. | |
2022 NSAA Women's Volleyball Postseason Awards
NSAA Women's Volleyball Player of the Year: Olivia Galas – Bellevue (Neb.)
NSAA Women's Volleyball Offensive Player-of-the-Year: Jada Mitchell – Viterbo (Wis.)
NSAA Women's Volleyball Co-Libero Player-of-the-Year: Adrianna Reinhart – Viterbo & Natalie Hadrava – Mayville State
NSAA Women's Volleyball Setter-of-the-Year: Olivia Galas – Bellevue (Neb.)
NSAA Women's Volleyball Freshman-of-the-Year: Jada Mitchell – Viterbo (Wis.)
NSAA Women's Volleyball Coach-of-the-Year: Ryan DeLong – Viterbo (Wis.)
NSAA Women's Volleyball Assistant Coach-of-the-Year: Michelle Meiklejohn – Mayville State (N.D.)