Hilir Henno of UC Irvine Receives AVCA Distinction of Excellence Award

AVCA release >>>
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Prolific outside hitter Hilir Henno of UC Irvine was announced Friday as the recipient of the AVCA Distinction of Excellence Award, presented by Nike Volleyball.

The award recognizes a student-athlete whose contribution to the sport extends beyond accolades, uniting generational athletic excellence with personal integrity, academic commitment, and a long-term impact. Given in specific circumstances to top-notch players and people, Henno is the first known Big West student-athlete to garner the distinction.

Henno was a first-team AVCA All-American this season, which marked a third-consecutive honor. Henno has been a key cog in the Anteaters rise on the national scale, seen by marked improvement each year in which the outside hitter has been in the program. UCI finished 11-16 in 2022, then 18-11 in 2023, followed by 20-11 in 2024, and 21-7 this season.

Last year’s team advanced to the 2024 National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Championship and reached the semifinal round before falling 3-2 to eventual victor UCLA. This season, Henno helped UC Irvine to a Top 5 ranking in every AVCA Poll, including the Anteaters reaching as high as No. 2 for five weeks, which is the school’s highest rank in a decade.

“Hilir is a player whose influence is felt not only through record-setting performance, but through the way he leads and has carried himself during his collegiate career,” said AVCA CEO Jaime Gordon. “The award is reserved for those who leave behind more than stats—also creating a legacy at their institution and on college athletics, as a whole—which he has done.”

Henno has continued to raise the level of his game, especially the past two seasons.  The native of Pornichet, France, ranks second national in aces in 2025 and tied the NCAA career ace mark of 255 at The Hawaiian Islands presents the 2025 Outrigger Big West Men’s Volleyball Championship. Henno also is second in points per set (5.47) and third in kills per set (4.40). During the 2024 season, Henno led the Anteaters to a top four national finish while ranking first nationally in points per set to claim AVCA Player of the Year.

Henno leaves The Big West dotting the record books as just the second student-athlete to earn four-time All-Big West first team honors. Along with holding the career aces mark in the league, Henno served up nine strikes against Penn State on March 5, 2003 and again on Jan. 13, 2024 versus Princeton to hold The Big West’s single-season match record as well. In 2024, Henno’s total of 557 kills in a season also became the new Big West standard, with 1,616 career kills also leading the way.