Gruner named to First Team
MARQUETTE, Mich. – The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) has announced its postseason awards, with four members of the Northern Michigan volleyball team earning recognition.
Senior McKenzie Gruner earned a spot on the First Team, juniors Liesl Haugen and Allie Barlow landed on the Second Team, and sophomore Madison York received an Honorable Mention nod.
Gruner earned her first career All-GLIAC honors following a breakout senior campaign. She led the Wildcats with 343 kills on a .328 attack percentage, as well as 91 blocks. She was named the GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week in the final week of the regular season. The native of Merrimac, Wisconsin, finished the season strong, recording 12+ in each of the last nine matches, including a career-best 24-kill outing vs. Michigan Tech on Oct. 28. In conference games, her .360 attack percentage (3rd) and 3.56 kills/set (5th) in GLIAC matches both ranked near the top of the conference leaderboard.
Haugen landed on the Second Team following one of the best defensive seasons in the conference. The three-time GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week recorded 20+ digs in 12 of her 24 matches, and her pair of 38-dig matches both rank in the top-20 individual performances in Division II this season. She finished second in the GLIAC with 4.98 digs/set and seventh in aces/set (0.40). This is her third All-GLIAC accolade after back-to-back seasons on the Honorable Mention team.
Setting the offense this season was Allie Barlow, who earned a Second Team nod for the second straight season after 1,088 assists and 10.06 assists per set, both ranking second across the conference. The product of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, now has 2,560 assists in her career, slotting her in the program’s top-10 leaderboard. She also added 34 aces, second on the team, and 33 blocks.
In her second season in Green and Gold, Madison York earned a spot on the Honorable Mention team. She finished the season second on the team with 247 kills (2.35 kills per set). She had 14 matches with double-digit kills and hit a season-best 18 against Wayne State on October 25.
