Youngstown, Ohio — The circuit of impressive honors continued for Youngstown State’s Abbie Householder on Wednesday as she was named an Honorable Mention All-American by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.

Householder is just the second player in program history to earn All-America status, joining Paula Gursching in 2022. The outside hitter from Canfield, Ohio, was previously named the Horizon League Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year, and she was an Honorable Mention AVCA All-Midwest Region selection.

Householder is the Horizon League’s only player to garner All-America honors this season, and Dayton’s Kamryn Hunt is the only other player from Ohio’s 13 Division I institutions or native of the Buckeye State to be on the prestigious list of All-Americans.

“We are so proud of Abbie for earning All-America honors,” said YSU head coach Riley Jarrett. “This is an amazing way to finish up her historic career here at YSU, and to truly leave her mark on our program. A lot of hard work and determination has gone into this recognition for Abbie, and I am so happy for her!”

Even with Youngstown State’s season ending on Nov. 22, Householder still ranks 20th in the country in total kills with 502, and she ranks 22nd in total points with 562.5. She ranks 42nd nationally with 4.22 kills per set, and she is 44th with 4.73 points per set. Each of those statistics led the Horizon League in 2025.

Householder finished her career as YSU’s all-time leader in kills with 1,427, passing the previous mark of 1,408 that had stood since 1999. She also is the career record holder with 4,241 attempts, and she ranks third in digs, fourth in points and sixth in aces. Householder is one of three Division I players who surpassed 1,400 career kills and 1,200 career digs this season.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama volleyball announced the addition of Dionii Fraga to its 2026 roster, who will join the Crimson Tide as a rising senior following previous stops at Oklahoma and Fresno State.

Fraga was the starting libero last season at Oklahoma and across two preceding seasons at Fresno State. In 27 matches with the Sooners last year, she led the team with 277 digs (2.61/set), including a season-best 16 win a five-set win over Missouri on Oct. 5. Prior to her arrival in Norman, she played in 63 matches over two seasons at Fresno State, earning All-Mountain West honors each year. She led the Bulldogs with 481 digs (3.91/set) as a sophomore after setting the program’s freshman digs record in 2023 with 544 (4.15/set). Following her breakout freshman campaign, she was named AVCA Pacific South Region Freshman of the Year.

Morehead, Ky. – The honors keep coming for Morehead State Volleyball’s M.E. Hargan. The senior outside hitter from Elizabethtown, Ky., has been named Honorable Mention All-American by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.
 
“The honor is definitely something I’ve always wanted to achieve,” said Hargan. “Hearing about and seeing these amazing players before me gave me motivation to show up and put in the work in a sport I love. I am so happy and thankful it finally came to be at the end of my collegiate career.”
 
Hargan becomes the fifth player in program history to earn All-America recognition. She joins Katelyn Barbour (2008), Holly Evans (2010), Ellie Roberson (2012) and Olivia Lohmeier (2020).
 
“M.E. being named Honorable Mention All-American is a tremendous honor, and very well deserved,” said Morehead State head coach Kyrsten Becker-McBride. “I’m incredibly proud of her season, the way she represents Morehead State University, and the type of student and person she is on daily basis.” 
 
Hargan led the Ohio Valley Conference with 493 kills this season, averaging 4.61 kills per set ranking 16^th in the country in NCAA Division I. Her 569 points (5.32 points per set average) ranked 11^th in the country.
 
She was named the OVC Player of the Year, the sixth Eagle to earn the award, joining Dayle Hammontree (1988. 1989), Amy Almond (2001, 2002), Holly Evans (2010), Roberson (2012) and Lohmeier (2018, 2020).
 
“Hitting .275 while taking over 1,200 swings is hard to do, especially given that much of her role is managing out-of-system sets,” said Becker-McBride.  “She’s made big strides in how she scores in those situations, and her growth over her four years at Morehead State has been rewarding to watch.”
 
One of Morehead State’s most prolific hitters, Hargan finished her career with 1,488 kills ranking third in program history for the modern era (2008-present when rally scoring changed to 25-point sets). Her 493 kills this season were the third-highest total in the modern era in the Eagle record book. Hargan finished with three seasons in the top 10 in program history for kills.
 
Her 2,575 total attacks’ tally is the second-highest in the program’s modern era. She also finished with 956 career digs, ranking ninth in the records. Her 98 career service aces and 36 career block solos both rank 10^th in the program, as does her 439 career sets played.
 
In November, the Ohio Valley Conference named Hargan an OVC Scholar-Athlete, the highest recognition awarded by the conference. She is just the fifth Morehead State volleyball player to have earned the award.
 
 “To earn the OVC Scholar-Athlete award and an All-American honor in the same year speaks volumes about who M.E. is and how she truly excels in every area of her life,” said Becker-McBride. “She is a great example of the true meaning of a student-athlete, since her on court accomplishments are accompanied by hundreds of hours of community service, outstanding grades in a challenging pre-vet degree, and great relationships with her teammates. 
 
Hargan was an All-OVC First Team selection the last three seasons becoming the seventh player in program history to be named to the All-OVC First Team at least three years.  This season, she was named OVC Player of the Week five times, including a run of three straight weeks (September 8 to September 22).
 
“M.E. would be the first person to say she can’t accomplish any of this without her teammates, which is why it’s fitting that this distinction also reflects as an honor for our whole program,” said Becker-McBride. “Her contribution to this program and university should highlight what is possible at a university like Morehead State.”
 
“This season had a lot of good moments on and off the court and I’m very grateful that I’ve gotten to share all of the experiences with amazing people,” said Hargan. “They definitely make it that much sweeter.”
 

WASHINGTON – Deniz Dakak adds an AVCA All-American honorable mention selection to her outstanding sophomore season, announced on Wednesday morning by the American Volleyball Coaches Association. She is the ninth player in program history to receive the honor in addition to her All-Region selection on Dec. 9. 

Dakak’s young career was put into the spotlight this season after she led the Patriot League in assists each week of the 2025 campaign. She was the quarterback of AU’s offense, which put up staggering numbers. The Eagles hit .294 at the end of the regular season, ranking 12th in the country before they hit a Patriot League Tournament record .500 in the conference championship match. 

The Istanbul, Turkey native averaged 10.53 assists per set this year, and finished the season with over 1,028 after the NCAA Tournament. Dakak was named the Patriot League Player and Setter of the Year, just the third player to ever earn both awards. With two seasons left, Dakak is on pace to finish in the top 10 of AU’s all-time assists list. 

AVCA All-American Awards

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In Thursday night’s NCAA Volleyball national semifinals, two coaches who are very familiar with one another will square off in the night’s second match. Kentucky head coach Craig Skinner and Wisconsin skipper Kelly Sheffield have a relationship that goes back decades.

Skinner and Sheffield are both from the Muncie, Indiana, area. In 1990, they led a Muncie Burris High School junior varsity team to an undefeated record.

Skinner and Sheffield would go their separate ways before both eventually became Division I head coaches. Skinner was named the head coach at Kentucky in 2004, while Sheffield was the head coach at Albany and Dayton before landing the Wisconsin job in 2012.

The UK head coach had nothing but praise for his counterpart in Thursday’s match.

“Kelly has earned everything he’s gotten,” Skinner said. “He’s come from humble beginnings, both in school and in coaching. He’s been on — coached and packed his car in an evening, had to be in Houston 20 hours later to start his first coaching job probably making about $10,000 a year. I have a lot of respect for someone that earned their way to this point in time.”

Skinner is also appreciative of the Muncie roots that both he and Sheffield have.

“You have to give a lot of credit to the Shondell family and Don Shondell for starting the Ball State program,” Skinner said. “Steve Shondell, the oldest Shondell son, played in and started the Muncie Burris program and Munciana Volleyball Club. When I started coming through Ball State, yeah, I’ll try this coaching thing. I just fell in love with what they were about.

“Ball State University started as a teacher’s college. Coaching is teaching,” Skinner said. “The joy and passion and interest in helping players do something better than they have ever have before. You really felt the essence of what coaching is.”

Skinner believes that his early beginnings showed him just how much he really wanted to be a coach.

“I tried to get away from coaching for a while,” Skinner said. “I had an accounting degree, got into banking. It sucked me back in because I love the competition and the teaching aspect. That started in Muncie, Indiana, in 1988 or ‘89 for me.”

For those who want to get into to coaching, starting off the way Skinner and Sheffield did is not rare. But Skinner knows that it has to be something you love.

“I always tell people that if you’re going to get into coaching, don’t get in it because you like it and you can make some money,” he said. “Get into it because you have a passion for helping people go above and beyond where they are. Kelly has demonstrated that for a long time.”

Two coaches who once coached a high school junior varsity team together square off in Thursday’s national semifinals when Kentucky plays Wisconsin. It’s a lesson in how much hard work and dedication can pay off.