LSSU's Velasque, FSU's Bylut and WSU's Dulgar selected as GLIAC volleyball players of the week

Posted: Oct 16, 2023

GLIAC -- The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) has announced its weekly awards following Week 7 of the 2023 volleyball season. Lake Superior State senior outside hitter Mariana Velasque was selected as GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week, Ferris State junior libero Leah Bylut was honored as GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week and Wayne State freshman setter Kayla Dulgar earned GLIAC Setter of the Week accolades.

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK - Mariana Velasque, Lake Superior State

Mariana Velasque proved to be a dominant force on the attack for the Lakers at the 2023 Midwest Crossover, helping lead her team to a pair of wins while averaging 5.17 kills per set with a total of 62 kills overall. She was especially strong in LSSU's straight-set victory over Malone with 6.33 kills per set on a hitting percentage of .500 while also serving four aces in that same match. She was highly efficient on the attack all weekend, never allowing her hitting percentage to drop below .300, and she would also score points for her team on defense with 10 block assists, in total, making her responsible for 71 of her team's 221 total points on the week (32%). Her efforts resulted in her being named to the GLIAC Midwest Region Volleyball Crossover All-Tournament Team

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK - Leah Bylut, Ferris State

Ferris State University junior libero Leah Bylut claimed all-tournament team honors this past weekend at the Midwest Region Crossover, leading the 19th-ranked Bulldogs to the title match. Bylut had a squad-best 51 digs on the weekend, averaging 5.10 digs per set as FSU recorded a 2-1 mark with the lone setback coming to fourth-ranked and unbeaten Missouri-St. Louis. Her totals included 16 digs or more in all three Bulldog outings with 18 coming against Findlay in a 3-1 win on Friday evening. She also had 48 receptions overall with only three errors in weekend action while playing all 10 Bulldog sets on the weekend.

SETTER OF THE WEEK - Kayla Dulgar, Wayne State

Kayla Dulgar (Warsaw, Ohio / River View) was named GLIAC Setter of the Week for the first time in her career on Monday. During Wayne State's 2-1 week at the Midwest Region Crossover, Dulgar racked up 135 total assists and 12.3 per set. The freshman finished with 40 or more of them in three-straight matches for the second time this season, including totals of 44, 45 and 46.

HONORABLE MENTION

OFFENSE: Jordyn Gates (GVSU), Kayla Giroux (WSU), Olivia Henneman-Dallape (FSU), Ava Irvin (Parkside), Jacqueline Smith (NMU), Madison Thompson (SVSU), Emmy Webb (DU)

DEFENSE: Amelia Albers (MTU), Kendyl Andrews (WSU), Natalie Harris (Parkside), Liesl Haugen (NMU), Stephanie Kalinowski (DU), Ally Lasley (LSSU), Kelsey Vittitow (SVSU), Sarah Wight (GVSU)

SETTER: Allie Barlow (NMU), Rachel Jacquay (GVSU), Emily Kalinowski (LSSU), Karlee Lois (Parkside), Kaylee Maat (FSU), Nicole Odeen (DU), McKenna Sovis (SVSU)