The Northeast Conference announced their 2024 Volleyball Award Winners today and Chicago State earned three of the five major awards, had four players earn First Team All-Conference and two earn Second Team honors.
The Cougars, playing in their first season in the Northeast Conference, earned the regular season title with a 13-1 record and were recognized for their efforts.
Tony Trifonov was named Coach of the Year,
Patrycja Lagida was named Player of the Year and
Wiktoria Zagumny Setter of the Year while
Julieta Sandez and
Andrea Calderon joined Lagida and Zagumny earning NEC First Team All-Conference accolades and
Berenice Almeyda and
Karly Klaer each earned Second Team honors.
Trifonov was named head coach of the Cougars women's volleyball team July 17, 2020 and since has taken the CSU volleyball program to new heights. The Cougars achieved the most wins over a four-year span (39), qualified for the Western Athletic Conference Tournament two times after not having done so since joining the conference in 2013, earned berths in two post-season championships for the first time in school history (NIVC 2021, 2023) and was named the WAC Coach of the Year in 2021 after the Cougars finished with a 17-11 record, which was the most single-season wins in school history. A feat this year's team has matched with a 17-9 record. He recruited and coached the 2021 Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year,
Yanlis Feliz, who became the first AVCA All-American in Chicago State history and is the first All-American for the university since 1987. She was named to the 2021 All-Western Athletic Conference First Team and hammered 540 kills, the most in Chicago State history, fifth-most in NCAA Division I and most in the WAC in 2017. Add to that Lagiida and Zagumny who came in as freshmen from Poland last year and earned major conference awards this season.
Lagida ranked second in the NEC averaging 3.29 kills per set, registering 306 kills in 93 sets, ranked second in league play in points, averaging 3.80 points per set and earned Player of the Week honors four times during the season. Zagumny was the NEC's assist leader with 865 in 94 sets, averaging 9.20 assists per set. Calderon ranked second in league play averaging 4.34 digs per set with 408 digs in 94 sets. Sandez was the NEC's hitting percentage leader, hitting .395 while
Berenice Almeyda ranked second at .330. Sandez also ranked third in blocks, averaging 0.96 blocks per set and Almeyda ranked ninth at 0.67. Klaer also earned Player of the Week honors two times, ranked seventh in the conference in kills per set (2.71), ninth in service aces per set (0.39) and sixth in points (3.31).
The Cougars were dominant in their first season in the NEC. They won nine matches by sweeping their opponent 3-0 and won 39 out of 47 games played in conference competition. For their efforts, Chicago State earned the right to host the NEC Championship this Friday and Saturday. The top-seeded Cougars play Friday at 2 p.m. at the Jacoby Dickens Center against No. 4 LIU. No. 2 FDU plays No. 3 Saint Francis Friday at 7 p.m. and the winners of those two matches will meet up a 6 p.m. Saturday for the right to earn the NEC's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
The complete list of NEC volleyball award winners listed below:
2024 Northeast Conference Women's Volleyball Award Winners
Player of the Year
Patrycja Lagida, Chicago State, OH, So., Chotomow, Poland
Defensive Player of the Year
Alasha Colon, LIU, L, Sr., Carolina, P.R./Academia Pesbiteriana (SFBK)
Setter of the Year
Wiktoria Zagumny, Chicago State, S, So., Warsaw, Poland
Rookie of the Year
Bella Correia, LIU, RS Fr., Sao Paulo, Brazil/Colégio Marista Glória
Coach of the Year
Tony Trifonov, Chicago State, 5th season
2024 Northeast Conference Women's Volleyball First Team All-Conference
Korrin Burns, Saint Francis, OH, Jr., Clarion, PA/Clarion Area
Patrycja Lagida, Chicago State, OH, So., Chotomow, Poland
Kori McClure, Saint Francis U, OH, Jr., Westerville, OH/Westerville North
Camelia Melendez, LIU, OH, Sr., Caguas, Puerto Rico/Colegio Católico Notre Dame (SFBK)
Julieta Sandez, Chicago State, MB, Jr., Ensenada, Argentina/Colegio Immaculada
Wiktoria Zagumny, Chicago State, S, So., Warsaw, Poland
Andrea Calderon, Chicago State, L, Gr., Lima, Peru/Peruano Chino Juan XXIII
Alasha Colon, LIU, L, Sr., Carolina, Puerto Rico/Academia Pesbiteriana (SFBK)
2024 Northeast Conference Women's Volleyball Second Team All-Conference
Kylie Nott, FDU, MH, Jr., Rockwall, TX/Rockwall
Avery Bain, FDU, OH, So., Pittsburgh, PA/Burrell
Berenice Almeyda, Chicago State, MB, Gr., Buenos Aires, Argentina/Nuestra Señora de la Merced
Alexandra Sappia, Saint Francis, S, R-So., West Palm Beach, FL/Suncoast Community
Karly Klaer, Chicago State, OPP, Jr., St. Joseph, MI/St. Joseph (Cleveland State)
Bella Correia, LIU, RS Fr., Sao Paulo, Brazil/Colégio Marista Glória
About Chicago State Athletics
Chicago State University sponsors 16 Division I intercollegiate athletic teams and competes in the Northeast Conference with the exception of men's and women's tennis who will compete in the Horizon League during the 2024-25 season. CSU's athletic program includes over 150 student-athletes that compete in basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, indoor and outdoor track, triathlon and volleyball.Â
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