Volleyball Trio and Booth Earn All-Region Honors

OMAHA, Neb. -- Three student-athletes from the Creighton Volleyball team, as well as head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth, were honored with All-Region acclaim by the American Volleyball Coaches Association on Tuesday.

Booth, in addition to senior Kiana Schmitt, junior Kendra Wait and sophomore Ava Martin were recognized as the best of the best from the East Region, which consists of a combination of 40 teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference, America East Conference, Atlantic 10 Conference, BIG EAST Conference, Coastal Athletic Association, Ivy League, Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and Patriot Leagues, in addition to independent Hartford.

Wait was named All-East Region for the third straight season. Schmitt picks up All-East Region First Team accolades for the first time after being an Honorable Mention pick a year ago, and Martin is recognized for the first time at the Regional level. Booth lands her fourth AVCA East Region Coach of the Year plaudit, having also picked up a similar award in 2015, 2016 and 2018.

This year's awards mark the ninth straight year that Creighton has had two or more student-athletes earn First Team All-Region acclaim, putting the Bluejays in elite company with the likes of Texas (23 straight years), Kentucky (14), Minnesota (14), Nebraska (13), Wisconsin (12), BYU (10) and Pittsburgh (9). Creighton's 28 First Team All-Region selections since 2015 ranks tied for 10th-most nationally, trailing only Texas (42), Kentucky (41), Nebraska (41), Minnesota (39), Stanford (36), Pittsburgh (34), Wisconsin (32), Florida (30) and Louisville (30).

Martin was a unanimous All-BIG EAST selection during a standout sophomore season in which she averaged 3.64 kills and 2.00 digs per set on .278 hitting. The Overland Park, Kan., product picked up four All-Tournament Team honors in 2023 and was a two-time BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week.. Martin was named MVP of the Diet Coke Classic in September following wins over High Point and No. 9 Minnesota.

Schmitt leads the BIG EAST with a .384 hitting percentage, which puts her on pace to set the single-season Creighton record. The Waunakee, Wis., resident is also second in the league with 1.09 blocks per set. Schmitt is a two-time All-BIG EAST choice and was named MVP at last month's BIG EAST Tournament.

Wait leads Creighton in both assists per set (10.43) and digs (380) while directing an offense that ranks third nationally in kills per set and 12th in hitting percentage. The Gardner, Kan., native was named BIG EAST Player of the Year and BIG EAST Setter of the Year after helping Creighton to a 10th straight BIG EAST regular-season title. Wait is a three-time All-BIG EAST and All-East Region choice. She was named All-Tournament Team at three different events this fall, and was also a three-time BIG EAST Player of the Week (twice Defensive, once Offensive).

Booth guided Creighton to its 10th straight regular-season BIG EAST title, and ninth BIG EAST Tournament crown in the past 10 years. The Bluejays are 29-4 this season and headed to the Sweet 16 after sweeping Colgate and Minnesota last weekend. The Bluejays overcame injuries to multiple key players mid-season and are currently in the midst of a 17-match win streak. This is her fourth honor.since 2015, tying her for the most nationally with Dani Busboom Kelly (Louisville), Travis Hudson (Western Kentucky), Heather Olmstead (BYU) and Kelly Sheffield (Wisconsin).

No. 17 Creighton (29-4) is in the midst of its 12th straight trip to the NCAA Tournament and travels to Pittsburgh on Tuesday in anticipation of Thursday's 11 a.m. Central contest vs. No. 7 Louisville that will be nationally-televised on ESPN2.

All-America honors will be announced prior to next week's Final Four in Tampa on Dec. 13th.

2023 AVCA Division I All-Region Teams, Award Winners

	East Region
	All-Region First Team
1st	Cara	Cresse	University of Louisville	MB	R-So.
1st	Anna	DeBeer	University of Louisville	OH	Sr.
1st	Carly	Diehl	Yale University	S	Jr.
1st	Ellie	Glock	University of Louisville	L	R-So.
1st	Aubrey	Hamilton	Marquette University	OH	Sr.
1st	Aiko	Jones	University of Louisville	RS	Gr.
1st	Audrey	Koenig	Florida State University	OH	Jr.
1st	Khori	Louis	Florida State University	MB	Jr.
1st	Charitie	Luper	University of Louisville	OH	Jr.
1st	Ava	Martin	Creighton University	OH	So.
1st	Amanda	Rice	North Carolina State University	RS	Jr.
1st	Kiana	Schmitt	Creighton University	MB	Sr.
1st	Elena	Scott	University of Louisville	L	Jr.
1st	Kendra	Wait	Creighton University	S	Jr.

	Honorable Mention
HM	Hattie	Bray	Marquette University	MB	Jr.
HM	Ava	Brizard	North Carolina State University	OH	So.
HM	Jaymeson	Kinley	Butler University	L	R-Sr.
HM	Phekran	Kong	University of Louisville	MB	Sr.
HM	Rachel	Krasowski	DePaul University	L	Sr.
HM	Rya	McKinnon	Howard University	OH	So.
HM	Kiari	Robey	Florida State University	MB	Jr.
HM	Zeynep	Uzen	American University	OH	Gr.

East Region Award Winners
Player of the Year: Anna DeBeer, University of Louisville, OH, Sr.
(none)
Coach of the Year: Kirsten Bernthal Booth, Creighton University


	East Coast Region
	All-Region First Team
1st	Olivia	Babcock	University of Pittsburgh	RS	Fr.
1st	Bianca	Bertolino	Georgia Tech	OH	So.
1st	Rachel	Fairbanks	University of Pittsburgh	S	Jr.
1st	Gracie	Johnson	Duke University	OH	Gr.
1st	Erin	Jones	St. John's University	S	So.
1st	Emmy	Klika	University of Pittsburgh	L	Jr.
1st	Grace	Lopez	University of Miami Florida	RS	Fr.
1st	Emma	Monks	University of Pittsburgh	MB	Gr.
1st	Chiamaka	Nwokolo	University of Pittsburgh	MB	Gr.
1st	Tamara	Otene	Georgia Tech	OH	Gr.
1st	Mabrey	Shaffmaster	University of North Carolina	OH	Jr.
1st	Torrey	Stafford	University of Pittsburgh	OH	Fr.
1st	Valeria	Vazquez Gomez	University of Pittsburgh	OH	R-Sr.
1st	Savannah	Vach	University of Miami Florida	S	Gr.

	Honorable Mention
HM	Kiera	Booth	Villanova University	MB	Sr.
HM	Tsvetelina	Ilieva	Binghamton University	OH	Sr.
HM	Hope	Matschner	Iona University	L	Sr.
HM	Jess	Robinson	Duke University	MB	Gr.
HM	Ali	Ruffin	The Citadel	OH	Jr.
HM	Sasha	van der Merwe	Marist College	OH	Sr.

East Coast Region Award Winners
Player of the Year: Rachel Fairbanks, University of Pittsburgh, Jr., S
Freshman of the Year: Olivia Babcock, University of Pittsburgh, RS
Coach of the Year: Joanne Persico, St. John's University


	Midwest Region
	All-Region First Team
1st	Tayler	Alden	University of Northern Iowa	S	Jr.
1st	Lexie	Almodovar	University of Dayton	OH	Jr.
1st	Sydney	Bolding	Kansas State University	MB	Sr.
1st	Aliyah	Carter	Kansas State University	OH	Sr.
1st	Logan	Case	Western Michigan University	S	Sr.
1st	Reagan	Cooper	University of Kansas	OH	Sr.
1st	London	Davis	University of Kansas	RS	Jr.
1st	Ayah	Elnady	University of Kansas	OH	Jr.
1st	Nayeli	Gonzalez	Iowa State University	OH	Fr.
1st	Amelia	Moore	University of Dayton	MB	Sr.
1st	Mackenzie	Morris	Kansas State University	Lib	Sr.
1st	Taylor	Oberpriller	Drake University	RS	Sr.
1st	Camryn	Turner	University of Kansas	S	Jr.
1st	Jada	Wills	Drake University	L	Sr.

	Honorable Mention
HM	Bree	Borum	Loyola University Chicago	S	Jr.
HM	Haley	Bush	Drake University	OH	Sr.
HM	Layanna	Green	University of Northern Iowa	MB	So.
HM	Emily	Holterhaus	University of Northern Iowa	OH	Sr.
HM	Aniya	Kennedy	Ball State University	OH	R-Fr.
HM	Giovana	Larregui Lopez	Eastern Illinois University	OH	Sr.

Midwest Region Award Winners
Player of the Year: Lexie Almodovar, University of Dayton, OH, Jr.
Freshman of the Year: Nayeli Gonzalez, Iowa State University, OH
Coach of the Year: Colleen Munson, Western Michigan University


	North Region
	All-Region First Team
1st	Bekka	Allick	University of Nebraska	MB	So.
1st	Merritt	Beason	University of Nebraska	RS	Jr.
1st	Giulia	Cardona	University of Evansville	RS	Jr.
1st	Kayley	Cassaday	University of Tulsa	OH	Gr.
1st	Natalie	Foster	Wichita State University	MB	Jr.
1st	Lydia	Grote	University of Minnesota	RS	Sr.
1st	Andi	Jackson	University of Nebraska	MB	Fr.
1st	Taylor	Landfair	University of Minnesota	OH	R-Jr.
1st	Kylie	Murr	University of Minnesota	DS/L	Gr.
1st	Harper	Murray	University of Nebraska	OH	Fr.
1st	Bergen	Reilly	University of Nebraska	S	Fr.
1st	Lexi	Rodriguez	University of Nebraska	DS/L	Jr.
1st	Julia	Sangiacomo	Northwestern University	OH	Gr.
1st	Melani	Shaffmaster	University of Minnesota	S	Sr.

	Honorable Mention
HM	Martina	Delucchi	University of Illinois-Chicago	OH	Sr.
HM	Madison	Harms	University of South Dakota	MB	Sr.
HM	Nalani	Iosia	Michigan State University	DS/L	Sr.
HM	Becca	Oldendorf	University of Illinois-Chicago	MB	Sr.
HM	Izzi	Strand	Wichita State University	S	Sr.
HM	Mckenna	Wucherer	University of Minnesota	OH	So.

North Region Award Winners
Player of the Year: Merritt Beason, University of Nebraska, Jr., RS
Freshman of the Year: Harper Murray, University of Nebraska, OH
Coach of the Year: John Cook, University of Nebraska


	Northeast Region
	All-Region First Team
1st	Carter	Booth	University of Wisconsin	RS	So.
1st	Chloe	Ciccone	Purdue University	OH	Fr.
1st	Raven	Colvin	Purdue University	MB	Jr.
1st	Sarah	Franklin	University of Wisconsin	OH	R-Jr.
1st	Camryn	Haworth	Indiana University	S	Jr.
1st	Lauren	Hovey	Bowling Green State University	RS	So.
1st	Eva	Hudson	Purdue University	OH	So.
1st	Emily	Londot	Ohio State University	OH	Sr.
1st	Callie	Martin	Wright State University	RS	Gr.
1st	Jess	Mruzik	Penn State University	OH	Sr.
1st	Mac	Podraza	Penn State University	S	Gr.
1st	Devyn	Robinson	University of Wisconsin	RS	Sr.
1st	Anna	Smrek	University of Wisconsin	RS	Jr
1st	Raina	Terry	University of Illinois	OH	Sr.

	Honorable Mention
HM	Tatijana	Fucka	Fairleigh Dickinson University	MB	Sr.
HM	Ramsey	Gary	Indiana University	L	Fr.
HM	Jordan	Hardy	Bucknell University	L	Jr.
HM	Caitlin	O'Farrell	Ohio University	MB	Sr.
HM	Kaley	Rammelsberg	Indiana University	MB	Gr.
HM	Lucia	Scalamandre	Princeton University	MB	So.
HM	Maddie	Schmerhorn	Purdue University	L	Sr.

Northeast Region Award Winners
Player of the Year: Sarah Franklin, University of Wisconsin, R-Jr., OH
Freshman of the Year: Chloe Ciccone, Purdue University, OH
Coach of the Year: Kelly Sheffield, University of Wisconsin
Coach of the Year: Travers Green, Wright State University

	Pacific North Region
	All-Region First Team
1st	Caitie	Baird	Stanford University	OH	Sr.
1st	Mimi	Colyer	University of Oregon	OH	So.
1st	Sami	Francis	Stanford University	MB	Jr.
1st	Gabby	Gonzales	University of Oregon	OH	Sr.
1st	Amber	Igiede	University of Hawai'i	MB	Sr.
1st	Magda	Jehlarova	Washington State University	MB	Sr.
1st	Kendall	Kipp	Stanford University	OPP	Sr.
1st	Morgan	Lewis	University of Oregon	OPP	Sr.
1st	Kara	McGhee	University of Oregon	MB	Sr.
1st	Kami	Miner	Stanford University	S	Jr.
1st	Elena	Oglivie	Stanford University	L	Jr.
1st	Hannah	Pukis	University of Oregon	S	R-Sr.
1st	Elia	Rubin	Stanford University	OH	So.
1st	Pia	Timmer	Washington State University	OH	Sr.

	Honorable Mention
HM	Malaya	Jones	Colorado State University	OPP	R-Jr.
HM	Maggie	Li	University of California-Berkeley	OH	Fr.
HM	Georgia	Murphy	University of Oregon	L	Sr.
HM	May	Pertofsky	University of Washington	OPP	Sr.
HM	Kjersti	Strong	St. Mary's College	MB	Sr.
HM	Argentina	Ung	Washington State University	S	Sr.
HM	Paige	Bartsch	Boise State University	OH	Jr.
HM	Bridgette	Smith	California State University, Sacramento	OH	Sr.

Pacific North Region Award Winners
Player of the Year: Kendall Kipp, Stanford University, OPP, Sr.
Freshman of the Year: Maggie Li, University of California-Berkeley, OH
Coach of the Year: Rob Neilson, Utah State University


	Pacific South Region
	All-Region First Team
1st	Grace	Chillingworth	Pepperdine University	OH	Jr.
1st	Anna	Dodson	University of California, Los Angeles	MB	Sr.
1st	Skylar	Fields	University of Southern California	OH	Sr.
1st	Claire	Jeter	Arizona State University	MB	Sr.
1st	Marta	Levinska	Arizona State University	RS	Sr.
1st	Isabel	Martin	University of Nevada, Las Vegas	OH	Sr.
1st	Jacquelyn	Moore	Loyola Marymount University	MB	Jr.
1st	Iman	Ndiye	University of California, Los Angeles	RS	Sr.
1st	Michelle	Ohwebete	University of California, Santa Barbara	OH	Sr.
1st	Tatum	Parrott	Grand Canyon University	OH	So.
1st	Macall	Peed	University of California, Santa Barbara	L	Sr.
1st	Shannon	Shields	Arizona State University	S	Sr.
1st	Mary	Shroll	Arizona State University	L	Sr.
1st	Mia	Tuaniga	University of Southern California	S	Jr.

	Honorable Mention
HM	Dionii	Fraga	Fresno State University	L	Fr.
HM	Biamba	Kabengele	University of the Pacific	RS	Sr.
HM	Zayna	Meyer	Long Beach State University	S	So.
HM	Klaire	Mitchell	Grand Canyon University	S	Sr.
HM	Riley	Patterson	Pepperdine University	L	Sr.
HM	Isabel	Zelaya	Pepperdine University	S	Sr.

Pacific South Region Award Winners
Player of the Year: Skylar Fields, University of Southern California, OH, Sr.
Freshman of the Year: Dionii Fraga, Fresno State University, L
Coach of the Year: J.J. Van Niel, Arizona State University


	South Region
	All-Region First Team
1st	Madison	Blane	Liberty University	MB	Jr.
1st	Paige	Briggs	Western Kentucky University	OH	Gr.
1st	Emma	Clothier	Southern Methodist University	MB	Gr.
1st	Danyle	Courtley	Rice University	OH	Sr.
1st	Kaylee	Cox	Western Kentucky University	OH	Jr.
1st	Jill	Gillen	University of Arkansas	OH	Gr.
1st	Taylor	Head	University of Arkansas	OH	Sr.
1st	Hannah	Hogue	University of Arkansas	S	Jr.
1st	Logan	Lednicky	Texas A&M University	RS	So.
1st	Meg	Mersman	Lipscomb University	MB	Sr.
1st	Jurnee	Robinson	Louisiana State University	OH	Fr.
1st	Madison	Scheer	Auburn University	OH	So.
1st	Bailey	Tillman	McNeese State University	L	Jr.
1st	Emilia	Weske	Rice University	RS	Gr.

	Honorable Mention
HM	Callie	Bauer	Western Kentucky University	S	R-So.
HM	Maggie	Cartwright	University of Arkansas	RS	Gr.
HM	Ifenna	Cos-Okpalla	Texas A&M University	MB	So.
HM	Celia	Cullen	Southern Methodist University	S	Sr.
HM	Rachel	Hartmann	Southeastern Louisiana University	RS	Jr.
HM	Kailin	Newsome	Southeastern Louisiana University	OH	Sr.

South Region Award Winners
Player of the Year: Paige Briggs, Western Kentucky University, OH, Gr.
Freshman of the Year: Jurnee Robinson, Louisiana State University, OH
Coach of the Year: Jason Watson, University of Arkansas


	Southeast Region
	All-Region First Team
1st	Eleanor	Beavin	University of Kentucky	L	Jr.
1st	Sophia	Davis	James Madison University	MB	Gr.
1st	Brooklyn	DeLeye	University of Kentucky	OH	Fr.
1st	Kacie	Evans	University of Georgia	OH	Gr.
1st	Morgahn	Fingall	University of Tennessee	RS	Gr.
1st	Sophie	Fischer	University of Georgia	MB	Sr.
1st	Emma	Grome	University of Kentucky	S	Jr.
1st	Caroline	Kerr	University of Tennessee	S	R-Fr.
1st	Kennedy	Martin	University of Florida	RS	Fr.
1st	Jenaisya	Moore	University of Tennessee	OH	Gr.
1st	Jasmine	Rivest	Coastal Carolina University	OH	R-Sr.
1st	Reagan	Rutherford	University of Kentucky	RS	Sr.
1st	Maya	Sands	University of Missouri	L	So.
1st	Azhani	Tealer	University of Kentucky	MB	Gr.

	Honorable Mention
HM	Jordan	Iliff	University of Missouri	RS	Jr.
HM	Jalyn	Stout	Coastal Carolina University	S/H	Fr.
HM	Dylan	Maberry	High Point University	OH	Sr.
HM	Jada	Rhodes	Alabama State University	OH	Sr.
HM	Yelianiz	Torres	University of Tennessee	L	Gr.
HM	Lily	Tessier	Florida Gulf Coast University	S	Gr.

Southeast Region Award Winners
Player of the Year: Morgan Fingall, University of Tennessee, RS, Gr.
Freshman of the Year: Brooklyn DeLeye, University of Kentucky, OH
Coach of the Year: Steve Loeswick, Coastal Carolina University


	Southwest Region
	All-Region First Team
1st	Whitney	Bower	Brigham Young University	S	Sr.
1st	Averi	Carlson	Baylor University	S	So.
1st	Kate	Georgiades	University of Houston	L	Sr.
1st	Jalyn	Gibson	Texas Christian University	OH	So.
1st	Kamaile	Hiapo	Brigham Young University	L	Gr.
1st	Abbie	Jackson	University of Houston	OH	Gr.
1st	Erin	Livingston	Brigham Young University	OH	Sr.
1st	Hannah	Maddux	University of South Alabama	OH	Gr.
1st	Whitney	McEwan-Llarenas	Brigham Young University	MB	Gr.
1st	Manuela	Mibinbe	Baylor University	MB	Sr.
1st	Asjia	O'Neal	University of Texas	MB	Sr.
1st	Melanie	Parra	Texas Christian University	OH	Jr.
1st	Kenna	Sauer	University of Houston	OH	Gr.
1st	Madisen	Skinner	University of Texas	OH	Jr.

	Honorable Mention
HM	Ielan	Bradley	Stephen F. Austin State University	OPP	Jr.
HM	Brianna	Ford	University of Texas at Arlington	OPP/OH	Sr.
HM	Kailey	Keeble	University of South Alabama	S	Gr.
HM	Elise	McGhee	Baylor University	OH	Jr.
HM	Belle	Morgan	Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi	S	Gr.
HM	Kyndal	Payne	Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi	OH	Jr.
HM	Molly	Phillips	University of Texas	OPP	Gr.
HM	Ella	Swindle	University of Texas	S	Fr.

Southwest Region Award Winners
Player of the Year: Madisen Skinner, University of Texas, Jr., OH
Freshman of the Year: Ella Swindle, University of Texas, S
Coach of the Year: Debbie Humphries, Stephen F. Austin State University

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