CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa --- The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) has announced its major award winners and all-conference team for the 2014 volleyball season. Wartburg College senior Bailey Wilson (West Des Moines, Iowa / Valley) has been named the Iowa Conference Player of the Year, while Buena Vista University freshman Jade Schaap (Doon, Iowa / Hull Western Christian) has been named the league's Freshman of the Year. Buena Vista University head coach Lori Slight has been named IIAC Coach of the Year. The 15-member All-Conference team and individual awards were nominated and voted on by the Iowa Conference's eight head coaches.

Wartburg’s Wilson Named Most Valuable — Wilson, a senior middle hitter, led the Knights to a 24-11 record and a runner-up finish in the Conference with a 5-2 mark. She has accumulated 382 kills, an average of 3.11 kills per set and the Iowa Conference best hitting percentage (.366) in overall matches. Wilson also has a league-best 111 total blocks while ranking second with 28 solo blocks. In conference play, she had 79 kills (2.93 per set) with a .344 hitting percentage to go along with 24 digs and 26 total blocks.
 
Wilson posted double-digits in kills in 20 of Wartburg’s 35 matches this season, topping out at 19 against St. Catherine in late August. She ranks as Wartburg’s all-time leader in attack percentage (.351), while sitting fourth all-time in block assists (313), fifth in total blocks (426) and matches played (146), sixth in solo blocks (113) and seventh in kills (1,268).
 
In September, Wilson was twice named the Iowa Conference’s Offensive Player of the Week (Sept. 14 & 28).
 
Wilson is the fourth Wartburg player to earn Most Valuable Player honors following Kim Kelly in 1990, Ashley Rogers in 2007 and Ramey Sieck in 2012 and 2013.

Schaap Takes Honors as Top Freshman — Schaap, an outside hitter, led­­ the Iowa Conference in kills with 118, averaging a league-high 4.07 per set. She also ranked ninth in digs (3.31 per set) and 10th in hitting percentage (.238). She holds three of the top four single-match kill totals among all IIAC players this season, topping out at a career-high 30 against Luther on Oct. 13. That represented the most kills in an IIAC match since 2008 (30 - Lindsey Schneider, Wartburg, vs. Luther, Oct. 28, 2008). Her 25 kills against Dubuque in Tuesday’s IIAC Tournament first-round match is the third-highest total in an IIAC Tournament match dating back to 2001.
 
Schaap, who had 17 double-doubles and seven matches of at least 20 kills this season, broke the single-season freshman record for kills (416 set last year by Maddie Bardole) and she joined Bardole this season as the first Buena Vista players to reach 500 kills in a single season. Heading into Saturday’s IIAC Tournament final against Coe, Schaap has 524 kills, 367 digs, 65 blocks (five solo), 29 assists and 42 service aces.
 
Schaap was named IIAC Defensive Player of the Week on September 15 and IIAC Offensive Player of the Week on October 12 and 19.
 
She is the second BVU player to be named IIAC Freshman of the Year (Bardole, 2013).

Slight Named Coach of the Year — Buena Vista head coach Lori Slight was voted the 2014 Iowa Conference Volleyball Coach of the Year by their peers. Slight has led a Beavers squad with only one upperclassman to a 25-10 mark overall heading into Saturday’s Iowa Conference Tournament championship match against Coe. Buena Vista tied Wartburg for second place in the Conference with a 5-2 mark in league play – marking the most conference victories since 2006 (5-3) and setting a new mark for best conference finish. The Beavers qualified for the IIAC Tournament for the first time since 2007 and, on Nov. 4, defeated Dubuque for their first tournament victory since 2003 and the first at home since 2002.
 
Overall, Slight has led Buena Vista to a school-record 11-match winning streak and back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 1985-86. This year’s 25 victories are also the most for the program since winning 26 in 1985. Buena Vista led the Iowa Conference in kills per set (13.62), hitting percentage (.248) and assists (12.97/set) and ranked third in blocks (1.74), service aces (1.79) and digs (16.97). The team also ranks in the top 10 nationally in team kills and assists.
 
This is Slight’s first IIAC Coach of the Year honor. It is also the fourth IIAC Volleyball Coach of the Year honor all-time for Buena Vista (Harriet Henry, 1986; Amy Sander, 2003; Lindsey Kruse, 2005).
 
All-Iowa Conference Team — The All-Iowa Conference volleyball team was also announced. Eight selections on the 15-member team have previously received all-conference honors, led by Coe outside hitter Rachel Schaefer. Schaefer captured all-league honors for the fourth time to become just the 13th four-time all-IIAC selection and the first from Coe. She was a second-team selection as a freshman and named to the single all-conference team each of last three years. Coe senior middle Rachel Bosworth and senior libero Alissa Wittenburg, Dubuque junior outside hitter Klaudia Basierak and Wilson all earned their third all-conference honor. In addition, Wilson received honorable mention from the coaches as a freshman. Buena Vista sophomore outside hitter Maddie Bardole, Central senior libero Dzenita Bahtic and Coe junior setter Mackenzie Harbaugh picked up their second all-IIAC honor.
 
This season's All-Iowa Conference team includes four players from Coe, three each from Buena Vista and Wartburg, two from Loras and one apiece from Dubuque and Luther. The team includes six seniors, five juniors, two sophomores and two freshmen.
 

2014 All-Iowa Conference Volleyball Team
Most Valuable Player — Bailey Wilson, sr., MH, Wartburg
Freshman of the Year — Jade Schaap, OH, Buena Vista
Coaches of the Year — Lori Slight, Buena Vista
All-Conference	School	Year	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Maddie Bardole @ $	Buena Vista	So.	OH	Granger, Iowa / Woodward-Granger
Emily Mathews	Buena Vista	Fr.	MB	Clear Lake, Iowa / Garner-Hayfield
Jade Schaap	Buena Vista	Fr.	OH	Doon, Iowa / Hull Western Christian
Dzenita Bahtic @	Central	Sr.	L	Urbandale, Iowa / Urbandale
Rachel Bosworth # @	Coe	Sr.	MB/MH	Nevada, Iowa / Nevada
Mackenzie Harbaugh @	Coe	Jr.	S	Manchester, Iowa / West Delaware
Rachel Schaefer ^ # @	Coe	Sr.	OH	Waterloo, Iowa / Columbus
Alissa Wittenburg # @	Coe	Sr.	L	Readlyn, Iowa / Wapsie Valley
Klaudia Basierak # @	Dubuque	Jr.	OH	Hainesville, Ill. / Grayslake
Danielle Kennedy %	Loras	So.	MB/MH	Dyersville, Iowa / Beckman
Kara Kentner	Loras	Jr.	RS/S	Orland Park, Ill. / Carl Sandburg
Leah Broderick	Luther	Sr.	MB/MH	Decorah, Iowa / Decorah
Kaity Brouwer	Wartburg	Jr.	MH	Dike, Iowa / Dike-New Hartford
Jamie Farley	Wartburg	Jr.	L	Cedar Falls, Iowa / Cedar Falls
Bailey Wilson & # @	Wartburg	Sr.	MH	West Des Moines, Iowa / Valley
Honorable Mention	School	Year	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Jordan Henningsen	Buena Vista	Sr.	L	Alta, Iowa / Alta
Emily McDonald	Central	Fr.	MH	Orange City, Iowa / MOC-Floyd Valley
Brianna Smith	Coe	Jr.	RS	Johnston, Iowa / Urbandale
Tabitha Blaser ! %	Simpson	Jr.	OH	Forest City, Iowa / Forest City
Claire Willenbring	Wartburg	So.	OH	Dyersville, Iowa / Beckman
Key to Previous Awards
$ - 2013 Iowa Conference Freshman of the Year
@ - 2013 All-Iowa Conference
% - 2013 Honorable Mention
# - 2012 All-Iowa Conference
! – 2012 Honorable Mention
^ - 2011 All-Iowa Conference Second Team
& - 2011 Honorable Mention