Dwight named Freshman-of-the-Year, four Tigers named All-GPAC

MITCHELL, S.D. – In her first season, freshman Ady Dwight (Langford, S.D.) made an immediate impact as she highlighted the Great Plains Athletic Conference postseason awards for the Dakota Wesleyan University volleyball team. Dwight is the first player in program history to be named the GPAC Freshman-of-the-Year, as three other DWU volleyball players were tabbed to the All-GPAC Team, the conference announced Thursday.

 The 6-foot freshman made her presence known from the first match of the season until the end of the year. She ranked fourth in the conference with 83 total blocks on the season and was sixth in the GPAC with 3.1 kills per set.

 Dwight led the team in kills per set and blocks per set with 1.1, as she ranked seventh in the NAIA in total blocks. She also checked in at 21^st in the country with 241 kills on the season and was 34^th nationally in blocks per set. On offense, Dwight recorded a season-high 21 kills against Northwestern College, while defensively she posted a season-best seven blocks twice against Concordia University and Midland University.

 "Being the freshman of the year in such an elite volleyball conference is quite the accomplishment and to be selected as a first-team pick is an even bigger accomplishment," head coach Lindsay Wilber commented. "Night in and night out Ady was going against experienced players across the net and to see the coaches realize her talent is awesome. And as a program, it just means we are trending in the right direction."

 Three other Tigers that were named to the all-conference team as Madeline Else (Holstein, Iowa) was tabbed All-GPAC Second Team, while Hanna Reiff (Chester, S.D.) and Mariah Gloe (Watertown, S.D.) were each named All-GPAC Honorable Mention.

 In her second season, Else guided the Tigers as a setter. She ranked second in the conference with 818 assists on the season and was fourth in the GPAC with 10.6 assists per set. He 818 assists throughout the season was second in the entire NAIA. Else recorded a career-high 53 assists three different times throughout the 2020 season.

 Reiff was a staple for the Tigers on defense as she led the team with 5.2 digs per set and 342 digs on the year. She checked in at third in the conference in digs per set and total digs. Reiff ranked 11^th nationally in total digs and posted a season-high 33 digs against Mayville State University.

 Gloe got off to a hot start on the season as she tallied a season-high 21 kills in the season opener against Mayville State. She finished the regular season third on the team with 2.3 kills per set and was second with 180 kills on the season. She was also second on the team with 254 digs on the year and with 3.3 digs per set.

 "We have a very athletic group of players right now in the program and to know I am going to have most of them for 2-3 more years in the program just makes me excited for the future and where we really can go," Wilber stated. "It also shows other high school athletes, especially South Dakota players, that you don't have to go far from home to play volleyball at a high level. Our conference is as good as it gets in terms of all-around talent and competition."