Women's Volleyball | 11/2/2022 9:50:43 AM
The Empire 8 Conference announced its 2022 Women’s Volleyball All-Conference awards on Wednesday, November 2. The awards are voted on by the league's head coaches. Hartwick sophomore setter Braelyn Hornick was named the 2022 Empire 8 Player of the Year.
Hornick has enjoyed a tremendous season for the Hawks, as she leads all Empire 8 student-athletes with 790 assists and 9.4 assists per set, while hitting .301 with 56 kills, a team-best 44 service aces (sixth most in the E8) and 191 digs. In league play, she dished out 10.2 assists per set. Hornick has had seven matches with at least 40 assists in 2022, including a career-high 56 on Sept. 23. Hornick was named the Empire 8 Player of the Week on Sept. 26 and a day later was named the Game Changer/American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division III National Player of the Week. Hornick is the first Hartwick student-athlete to be named Empire 8 Player of the Year.
Senior Elaina Moisidis of Russell Sage College was named the E8 Libero/Defensive Specialist of the Year. Moisidis led all Empire 8 players with 547 digs and 5.2 digs per set, which also has her in the top-50 nationally. She had at least 20 digs in 13 matches including two contests with 32 digs and recorded at least 10 digs in 26 of 29 matches this season. She is the first Russell Sage player to earn an E8 women’s volleyball individual award.
Alfred University middle blocker Casey Grange was named Rookie of the Year. Grange enjoyed a tremendous debut season for Alfred, slamming 202 kills (3.11 per set) to go along with 147 digs and 19 blocks in 18 matches played. In league play, she led all players with 127 kills, 3.97 kills per set and 4.28 points per set. Grange is the second Alfred women’s volleyball player to earn E8 Rookie of the Year honors.
Hartwick head coach Jim Clar and his staff were honored as the Empire 8 Coaching Staff of the Year for the first time in program history. Hartwick has enjoyed an excellent 2022 season, entering the tournament with a 19-4 overall record and an 8-1 mark in league play. Four Hawks earned All-Empire 8 honors this season, headlined by Hornick, the Player of the Year.
Nazareth sophomore setter/right side Tessa Grover was the lone repeat selection on the 2022 Empire 8 First Team. Regular season champion St. John Fisher was well represented by senior Sydney French and junior Delayne Young, while runner-up Hartwick also had a pair of selections in Hornick and senior Collette Maloney. Moisidis and Eleanor Cepiel from Utica University also garnered first team accolades.
One member of each team was named that institution's representative on the 2022 Women's Volleyball Sportswoman of the Year Team. The Empire 8 Conference emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete's experience in conjunction with an institution's educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportswomen.
2022 Empire 8 Women’s Volleyball All-Conference Selections
Player of the Year: Braelyn Hornick, So., S, Hartwick
Libero/Defensive Specialist of the Year: Elaina Moisidis, Sr., L/DS, Russell Sage
Rookie of the Year: Casey Grange, Jr., MB, Alfred
Coaching Staff of the Year: Hartwick, led by head coach Jim Clar
Empire 8 First Team
Braelyn Hornick, So., S, Hartwick
Collette Maloney, Sr., OH, Hartwick
Tessa Grover, So., S/RS, Nazareth
Elaina Moisidis, Sr., L/DS, Russell Sage
Sydney French, Sr., OH/MB, St. John Fisher
Delayne Young, Jr., OH, St. John Fisher
Eleanor Cepiel, Sr., OH/RS, Utica
Empire 8 Second Team
Casey Grange, Jr., MB, Alfred
Haley Unverdorben, Gr., S, Houghton
Chase Luebeck, So., OH/MH, Medaille
Kaileigh Brandow, Jr., OH, Hartwick
Kaylee Kelly, Sr., OH, Nazareth
Celia Gagnon, Gr., MH, Russell Sage
Lindsey DeBonis, Sr., OH, St. John Fisher
Empire 8 Third Team
Darian Ortiz, Sr., L/S, Alfred
Staecia Silofau, So., RS/OH, Hartwick
Emma Cole, Fr., MB, Houghton
Julie Immel, So., OH, Houghton
Dayna Edholm, Jr., OH, Keuka
Casey Hunziker, Jr., S, Keuka
Rylie Loomis, Fr., OH, Nazareth
Katie Leaty, Gr., S, St. John Fisher
Empire 8 Sportswoman of the Year
Corinne Ferguson, Jr., OH/OPP, Alfred
Sydney Meyers, Sr., RS, Elmira
Sarah Petz, Sr., L/DS, Hartwick
Haley Unverdorben, Gr., S, Houghton
Sarah Paradiso, So., RS, Keuka
Avery Ang, Fr., S, Medaille
Jillian Panek, Jr., OH, Nazareth
Caitlin Hammecker, Jr., OH, Russell Sage
Emily Brochey, So., S St. John Fisher
Krystell Pappas, So., L/DS, Utica
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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