LOCK HAVEN, Pa. --- Shepherd University’s Mikaylah Hoy and Clarion University’s London Fuller earned Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference’s major awards in their respective divisions. Hoy and Fuller were announced along with the rest of the PSAC All-Conference teams voted on by the league’s head coaches, the league office released Thursday.
2022 PSAC East Major Award Winners and All-Conference Teams
Joining Hoy in the PSAC East, her teammate Claire Ellis was selected as Defensive Athlete of the Year, while their head coach, Alex Hoekstra, was picked as the East’s Coach of the Year.
Of the major award winners in the East not from Shepherd, was Freshman of the Year, Adrianna Derstine of Kutztown University.
For Hoy, she was also an All-PSAC First Team honoree back in 2021 and here again in 2022. Hoy was fifth in the PSAC in kills per set this year averaging 3.29 in 87 sets played. She also had 286 total kills for the Rams. Hoy was also ninth in the league this season in total points scored with 331. She was key for the Rams in a season in which they were 21-6 overall and 12-2 in league matches. They are currently in the semifinal round in the 2022 PSAC Volleyball Tournament as the top seed in the East.
Defensive Athlete of the Year, also hailing from Shepherd is Claire Ellis. Ellis was outstanding as a defensive specialist as she was ninth in the league in digs per set at 4.02 and totaled 362. Not only was she huge for the Rams defense but helped carry so much momentum ranking second in the PSAC in service aces with 52. She averaged 0.58 aces per set which was also second in the conference.
Rounding out the Shepherd trio of award winners is head coach Alex Hoekstra. As mentioned previously, Shepherd earned the top seed in the PSAC East with a 12-2 conference mark. The Rams were also one of the top attacking teams in the league ranking fifth in team attack percentage at .196. Their defensive play proved to be their strength, however, as the Rams were first in the PSAC in blocks per set (2.65) and total blocks (254.0) under Hoekstra’s direction.
PSAC East Freshman of the Year was Kutztown’s Adrianna Derstine. The talented Barto, Pennsylvania native put together an impressive rookie campaign as one of the most dangerous attackers in the league. She led all the PSAC points (450), was also first in points per set (4.74) and total kills (401). Her first season for the Golden Bears also allowed her to earn First-Team All-PSAC.
A good sign of the rotation of talent in the PSAC East, as just three all-conference honorees were repeat selections. See below for the first and second team All-PSAC squads in the East.
2022 PSAC Volleyball All-Conference Eastern Division
PSAC VOLLEYBALL EASTERN DIVISION ALL-CONFERENCE FIRST TEAM
| Player |
School |
Cl. |
Hometown / Previous School |
| Oyinda Agbale |
Shippensburg |
Jr. |
Pittsburgh, Pa. / Shaler Area |
| Anna Coulter |
East Stroudsburg |
Fr. |
Hershey, Pa. / Hershey |
| Adrianna Derstine |
Kutztown |
Fr. |
Barto, Pa. / Boyertown |
| Sadie Doss |
Kutztown |
Sr. |
Mechanicsburg, Pa. / West Chester |
| Brynn Dreisbach |
West Chester |
Fr. |
Allentown, Pa. / Parkland |
| Claire Ellis |
Shepherd |
R-So. |
Louisa, Va. / Saint Catherine’s School |
| Mikaylah Hoy* |
Shepherd |
Sr. |
Sharpsburg, Md. / Heritage Academy |
| Rachel Verhoef* |
Shippensburg |
Sr. |
Greencastle, Pa. / Greencastle-Antrim |
PSAC VOLLEYBALL EASTERN DIVISION ALL-CONFERENCE SECOND TEAM
| Player |
School |
Cl. |
Hometown / Previous School |
| Makayla Baca |
East Stroudsburg |
Jr. |
Santa Fe, N.M. / Montana State Billings |
| Liz Bopp |
Bloomsburg |
Jr. |
Edensburg, Pa. / Central Cambria |
| Jamie Byrne* |
West Chester |
R-So. |
Bethlehem, Pa. / Liberty |
| Becca Dalstad |
Millersville |
R-Jr. |
Zionsville, Pa. / Emmaus |
| Kearstin Davis |
Shippensburg |
Fr. |
San Antonio, Texas / Reagan |
| Renee Killough |
Shepherd |
So. |
Bloomery, W.Va. / Hampshire |
| Hailey Lewis |
West Chester |
Sr. |
Downingtown, Pa. / Downingtown West |
| Kaylee LoPresto |
East Stroudsburg |
R-Jr. |
Litchfield Park, Ariz. / Millennium |
Athlete of the Year: Mikaylah Hoy, Shepherd
Defensive Athlete of the Year: Claire Ellis, Shepherd
Freshman of the Year: Adrianna Derstine, Kutztown
Coach of the Year: Alex Hoekstra, Shepherd
* Indicates previous All-PSAC first team selection
^ Indicates previous All-PSAC second team selection
+ Indicates previous All-PSAC third team selection
2022 PSAC West Major Award Winners and All-Conference Teams
In the PSAC West, along with Fuller, there were three Gannon members who earned major awards. Emma Hall earned Defensive Athlete of the Year, Bengisu Arslan was Freshman of the Year, and head coach Matt Darling was Coach of the Year.
Clarion’s London Fuller was tabbed as the PSAC West’s Athlete of the Year in a season she did it all, but mostly distributed the ball amongst the Golden Eagles high-powered attack. Fuller led all PSAC players in assists per set averaging 11.18 while also leading in total assists at 1,062. Fuller also aided on the defensive side of the ball ranking second on Clarion’s squad in total blocks at 59.0 and ranked second in digs with 267. She adds the Athlete of the Year honor to her resume along with a second First-Team All-PSAC selection, and PSAC Volleyball Tournament MVP in 2021.
Defensive Athlete of the Year goes to Gannon’s Emma Hall who was huge as a defensive specialist. Hall was second in the PSAC in digs per set (5.17) and total digs (527). Hall was all over the floor all season staying consistent and tied for the team-lead in total sets played at 102. She also added 32 service aces on the offensive side of the ball for the Golden Knights.
The PSAC West Freshman of the Year also hails from Gannon as Bengisu Arslan proved to be huge for the Golden Knights all year in all facets of the game. She was second to Fuller in assists per set at 9.98 and in total assists at 1,018. Arslan also added 244 digs and 2.39 digs per set for the Golden Knights in her rookie campaign. Along with Freshman of the Year, Arslan was a First-Team All-PSAC honoree.
Joining two of his Gannon players is coach of the year, Matt Darling. Darling led the Golden Knights to the top seed in the PSAC West with a 15-1 conference mark while also winning 24 games overall in 2022. Gannon was second in the PSAC in points per set at 16.69, third in team attack percentage (.244) and second in total kills at 1,324. Gannon was also the lone PSAC squad ranked earlier this year in the AVCA Top 25 poll under Darling’s tutelage.
The West had seven repeats on the all-conference squads this year. For the full All-PSAC quads see below.
2022 PSAC Volleyball All-Conference Western Division
PSAC VOLLEYBALL WESTERN DIVISION ALL-CONFERENCE FIRST TEAM
| Player |
School |
Cl. |
Hometown / Previous School |
| Bengisu Arslan |
Gannon |
Fr. |
Ankara, Turkey / |
| Bella Burelli* |
Edinboro |
Jr. |
New Castle, Pa. / Neshannock |
| London Fuller* |
Clarion |
Sr. |
Baltimore, Md. / Baltimore Polytechnic |
| Maggie Greenfield^ |
Gannon |
R-Sr. |
Woodstock, Ontario / Woodstock Collegiate Institute |
| Emma Hall |
Gannon |
So. |
Lowell, Mich. / Lowell |
| Julia Piccolino^ |
Clarion |
Sr. |
North Versaiiles, Pa. / Serra Catholic |
| Cassidy Snider* |
Clarion |
So. |
Harmonsburg, Pa. / Conneaut Area |
| Lauren Valentic |
IUP |
Jr. |
Canonsburg, Pa. / Buffalo |
PSAC VOLLEYBALL WESTERN DIVISION ALL-CONFERENCE SECOND TEAM
| Player |
School |
Cl. |
Hometown / Previous School |
| Lauren Aichinger |
Clarion |
R-Sr. |
Buffalo, N.Y. / Buffalo Academy of the Sacred Heart |
| Madde Blake |
Gannon |
Jr. |
Crystal Lake, Ill. / Crystal Lake Central |
| Alicia Eldredge+* |
Edinboro |
Sr. |
Odenton, Md. / Arundel |
| Nicole Peterson |
IUP |
Sr. |
Cleveland, Ohio / Berea-Midpark |
| Elisa Rugiero |
California (Pa.) |
Fr. |
Vicenza, Italy / Farina Vicenza |
| Erica Selfridge |
Slippery Rock |
So. |
Dubois, Pa. / Clarion |
| Erica Sharp |
Edinboro |
Sr. |
Milford, Ohio / Milford |
| Caroline Walsh* |
IUP |
Sr. |
Nazareth, Pa. / Nazareth Area |
Athlete of the Year: London Fuller, Clarion
Defensive Athlete of the Year: Emma Hall, Gannon
Freshman of the Year: Bengisu Arslan, Gannon
Coach of the Year: Matt Darling, Gannon
* Indicates previous All-PSAC first team selection
^ Indicates previous All-PSAC second team selection
+ Indicates previous All-PSAC third team selection
ABOUT THE PSAC
Headquartered in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference is an NCAA Division II Conference comprised of 18 institutions in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The member institutions are Bloomsburg, California (Pa.), Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Gannon, Indiana (Pa.), Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Mercyhurst, Millersville, Pitt-Johnstown, Seton Hill, Shepherd, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester.