Hiebert wins MVC Setter of the Year, five players named to All-MVC teams

Hannah Roberts

Junior Emily Hiebert sets up the ball for junior Abbie Lehman in a game against IUPUI at Charles Koch Arena. Hiebert was the first WSU player to win Setter of the Year on Thursday.

The Missouri Valley Conference recognized Wichita State volleyball’s success by putting five Shockers on All-MVC teams and giving junior setter Emily Hiebert the 2016 MVC Setter of the Year on Thursday.

Hiebert averaged 10.62 assists per set, dishing out 1,051 total to rank 49th in the country. Along with coming up with 14 double-doubles in WSU’s 22-7 season, Hiebert led the Shockers with a .293 hitting percentage. The first WSU player to win the conference’s Setter of the Year award in school history ranks first on the team in assists and service aces, second in blocks and third in digs.

Along with Hiebert being named to the All-MVC First Team list, Junior Abbie Lehman collected her third straight All-MVC first team honor after leading the conference in hitting percentage and blocks. Lehman hit .409 on the season while scoring off 272 kills. Coming up with 1.25 blocks per set totaling 124 blocks, Lehman’s defense allowed the Shockers to come up with 18 season sweeps.

Senior Jody Larson rallied out the list of All-MVC First Team members after leading the Shockers with an average of 3.09 kills per set. Larson came up with 11 double-doubles in kills and digs, averaging 3.30 digs per set this season.

Junior Mikaela Raudsepp and sophomore Tabitha Brown earned spots on the All-MVC Second Team, tying Northern Iowa and Missouri State for the most players to earn All-MVC honors. Raudsepp, a 2015 All-MVC second team selection, led the Shockers in kills with 289. Raudsepp scored 317 points, averaging 3.20 points per set to rank third on the Shockers.

Brown, a transfer from the University of Alabama, was third on the Shockers in kills with 273 averaging 2.76 kills per set. Brown racked up 11 double-digit kill games, including a career-high performance of 20 kills in a win against Illinois State on Nov. 11.

WSU will play in the MVC Tournament Semi-Finals as a No. 2 seed on Friday at 7:30 in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The Shockers will play the winner of the UNI-Loyola quarterfinal match up that will play at 7:30 on Thursday.