Women's Volleyball

#AEVB Week 8: UMBC Posts Unbeaten Week to Retake First Place

BOSTON – The conference schedule hit the midway point last week and UMBC regained first place position in the league standings once again. The reigning America East regular-season and tournament champions sit atop the standings at 4-1 while three schools -Binghamton, Bryant and UNH- are tied at 3-2.

Need to Know
  • UMBC beat UNH, 3-2, on Sunday to move into first place at 4-1.
  • UMBC has won six of its last eight matches since starting 0-10.
  • The Bearcats' Tsvetelina Ilieva ranks fifth nationally averaging 4.8 kills/set.
  • UAlbany beat Bryant, 3-0, on Sunday for its third-straight win.
  • The top four teams in the conference standings at the end of the season will qualify for the 2024 America East Volleyball Championship. Visit Championship Central for more information.
  • The #AEVB preseason poll and All-Conference teams were announced on August 12 - link.
 
Weekly Award Winners – Oct. 21
Player of the Week
Tsvetelina Ilieva, Binghamton – Gr., Outside Hitter, Sofia, Bulgaria
  • Averaged a league-best 5.7kills/set and added 3.3 digs/set over two matches while hitting .344.
  • Had 12 kills, 13 digs and four service aces in a 3-0 sweep of NJIT.
  • This is Ilieva’s fifth #AEVB Player of the Week honor of the season and 10th of her career.
 
Setter & Rookie of the Week
Maria Olga Siapani, UAlbany – Fr., Setter, Limassol, Cyprus
  • Averaged a league-best 10.6 assists per set and 2.6 digs per set in a 1-0 week.
  • Had 38 assists (12.7/set) in a 3-0 sweep of Bryant.
  • Also had eight kills and three service aces.
  • This is Siapani’s fifth time earning both #AEVB Setter and Rookie of the Week honors this season.
 
Defensive Specialist of the Week
Aysia Miller, UMBC – Gr., Libero, Mililani, Hawaii
  • Averaged a league-best 5.2 digs/set last week in a 2-0 week for UMBC.
  • Contributed a career-high tying 32 digs in a 3-2 win over UNH on Sunday.
  • Also added five service aces and nine assists.
  • This is Miller’s second #AEVB Defensive Specialist of the Week honor of the season.
 
2024 #AEVB Weekly Award Winners
Sept. 4 – Player of the Week: Meredith Hohnbaum, New Hampshire; Setter & Rookie of the Week: Maria Olga Siapani, UAlbany; Defensive Specialist of the Week: Sthefany Carvalho, UAlbany
Sept. 10 – Player of the Week: Aubrey LaPour, Bryant; Setter & Rookie of the Week: Maria Olga Siapani, UAlbany; Defensive Specialist of the Week: Misa Dlouha, Binghamton
Sept. 17 – Player of the Week: Tsvetelina Ilieva, Binghamton; Setter of the Week: Carolina Camacho, Bryant; Defensive Specialist of the Week: Doga Emil, NJIT; Rookie of the Week: Emma Torres, NJIT
Sept. 24 – Player of the Week: Tsvetelina Ilieva, Binghamton; Setter & Rookie of the Week: Maria Olga Siapani, UAlbany; Defensive Specialist of the Week: Aysia Miller, UMBC
Oct. 1 – Player of the Week: Tsvetelina Ilieva, Binghamton; Setter of the Week: Lottie Scully, Binghamton; Defensive Specialist of the Week: Carrina Barron, Bryant; Rookie of the Week: Viktoria Dimitrova, Binghamton
Oct. 8 – Player of the Week: Mia Bilusic, UMBC; Setter of the Week: Lottie Scully, Binghamton; Defensive Specialist of the Week: Kelly Kaufmann, New Hampshire; Rookie of the Week: Hannah Dobbs, UMBC
Oct. 15 - Player of the Week: Tsvetelina Ilieva, Binghamton; Setter & Rookie of the Week: Maria Olga Siapani, UAlbany; Defensive Specialist of the Week: Brookelyn Talmadge, Bryant
Oct. 22 - Player of the Week: Tsvetelina Ilieva, Binghamton; Setter & Rookie of the Week: Maria Olga Siapani, UAlbany; Defensive Specialist of the Week: Aysia Miller, UMBC

Links
Info
Fans will once again be able to watch nearly every #AEVB contest this season with the majority of games airing on ESPN+ and the ESPN app while others will air on AmericaEast.TV. Those games will be available on computers, OTT devices and the America East app, which is available on all IOS and Android devices and can be found by searching ‘America East Conference’ in app stores.
 
Follow the @AmericaEast channels on Twitter and Instagram to stay up to date on America East volleyball news all season long and use #AEVB to join the conversation.
 
ABOUT AMERICA EAST
Founded in 1979, the America East Conference is an elite NCAA Division I athletic conference that fosters an environment for student-athletes to become champions. Comprised of academically renowned, like-minded member institutions located in the Northeast region of the United States, America East is committed to broad-based excellence and progressive in its approach to supporting its more than 3,500 student-athletes across 18 sponsored sports. For more information, visit www.AmericaEast.com and follow the America East Conference and its social media channels, @AmericaEast.
 
- America East Conference – Where Champions Rise -