ST. LOUIS – Illinois State volleyball outside hitter Tamara Otene was named the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year, while teammate Kaity Weimerskirch was selected as the league's Libero of the Year as announced by the conference office on Thursday morning.
Otene and Weimerskirch were joined by Sarah Kushner on the All-MVC First Team, marking the trio's first time as All-Conference First Team selections. Aliyah Moore earned a spot on the MVC All-Freshman Team.
"I'm just really proud of our entire team," said head coach Leah Johnson. "The Valley was deep and experienced this year and I'm proud of how we fought and grew together throughout the course of the season. To have Aliyah (Moore) make the freshman team and get Sarah (Kushner), Tam (Otene) and Kaity (Weimerskirch) on the All-MVC First Team is just awesome. Tam and Kaity have both been phenomenal all season long so to have them recognized as the Player and Libero of the Year isn't surprising to me. I'm glad that they are getting recognized for their hard work this season."
The Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year is not only one of the most dominant players in the league, she's also one of the best in the nation, ranking 20th in the NCAA with 457 kills and 25th in the NCAA with 505.5 total points this season.
Of Otene's 457 kills, 305 came during a tough MVC schedule, where she averaged 4.49 kills and 5.00 points per set. She has finished with 10+ kills in 25 of ISU's 30 matches during the regular season, including seven times with 20+ kills in a single match.
"I wouldn't have been able to accomplish what I did this season without my teammates," Otene said. "Lefy (Katelyn Lefler) and Nora (Janka) did a great job all season setting me up and without having two great setters like them, I wouldn't have had that same success. The attackers get so much of the credit, but the setters are a key part in what makes us such a successful attacking team. I'm honored to receive this award and I'm looking forward to competing for a title with my teammates this weekend."
Otene becomes the eighth Redbird and first since 2014 to earn the title of MVC Player of the Year.
The MVC Libero of the Year leads the conference and ranks 16th in the nation with 551 total digs this season, averaging 4.79 digs/set. During MVC matches, Weimerskirch recorded 334 digs, averaging an MVC-leading 4.91 digs per set. Earlier this season, Weimerskirch became only the 16th Redbird in school history to reach 1,000 career digs.
"It means so much to me to receive this award, especially with all of the talented liberos in the Valley," Weimerskirch said. "I couldn't have done it without my teammates and coaching staff who push me every day to get me to the point that I'm at now."
Weimerskirch becomes the fifth Redbird to be name the Valley's Libero of the Year. Illinois State has had an athlete earn Libero of the Year honors seven times now, after Emily Orrick and Courtney Pence each earned the honor twice during their careers.
After earning a spot on the All-MVC Second Team during the 2020-21 season, Kushner earned First Team honors for the first time in her career. Ending the regular season tied for a conference-leading 18 double-doubles, 11 of which came during MVC action, Kushner has 340 kills (2.96 kills/set) and 324 digs (2.82 digs/set) so far during the 2021 campaign. Kushner has notched double-digit kills in 21 matches this season, including a 10-game streak with double figures from Sept. 18 through Oct. 18, and has had at least 10 digs on 19 different occasions during the 2021 season.
For the second-straight season, the Redbirds have had an athlete on the All-Freshman Team. Moore finished the regular season with 220 kills (2.12 kills/set) and 71 blocks (0.68 blocks/set) in her debut season for Illinois State. Throughout the 2021 season, Moore finished with double-digits on 11, including a six-game streak with 10 kills or more during conference play.
UP NEXT
The Redbird volleyball team is back in action on Friday, November 26 at 6 p.m. when they face the winner of the No. 3 Bradley/No. 6 Indiana State match and go for their third-straight MVC Tournament Championship title. All the MVC Championship action is hosted right here in Normal at Redbird Arena – buy an all-session or single session ticket here!
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