CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa --- The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) has announced its major award winners and all-conference team for the 2015 volleyball season. Buena Vista University outside hitter Maddie Bardole (Granger, Iowa / Woodward-Granger) has been named the Iowa Conference Player of the Year, while Loras College setter/right side hitter Claire Ritchie (Lakeville, Minn. / Lakeville South) and Luther College middle blocker Emma Veum (Eagan, Minn. / Eastview) have been named the league’s co-Freshmen of the Year. Loras College head coach Jenna Ness 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.

Buena Vista’s Bardole Named Most Valuable — Bardole led the Beavers to an 18-16 record, a tie for third place in the Iowa Conference with a 4-3 mark and a spot in the IIAC Tournament semifinals. She accumulated 459 kills, an average of 3.48 per set, and 408 digs -- figures that both rank second on the team in overall matches. Already the school’s single-season record holder for kills with her 614 last season, this year’s entry ranks fifth all-time at Buena Vista.

With one season to play, Bardole already holds Buena Vista’s career kills mark with 1,489, surpassing the previous mark of 1,312 which had stood since 2006. She posted a season-high 26 kills against Dubuque on October 21 - a mark that is tied for the fifth-most in a single-match in Buena Vista history and the second-most by an Iowa Conference player in a league match this season.

In Iowa Conference play, she ranked second in total kills (113) and kills per set (4.19) while ranking sixth in hitting percentage (.317). On September 22, Bardole set a BVU single-match record with a .750 attack percentage when she had 16 kills and only one error in 20 attempts in a 3-0 sweep of Coe.

She ranks third among IIAC players with 20 double-doubles and reached double-digits in kills in 28 of 34 matches this season.

Bardole, who was named the IIAC Offensive Player of the Week once this year (Oct. 4), is the first Buena Vista player to earn Most Valuable Player honors.

Ritchie and Veum Share Top Freshman Honors — Ritchie ranked sixth in the conference after averaging 6.04 assists per set during league play. Overall, she averaged 5.62 assists and 2.54 kills per set to rank eighth and ninth, respectively, among all IIAC players.

She leads all IIAC players with 22 double-doubles this season and has seven of only 10 triple-doubles among IIAC players, highlighted by a 15-kill, 16-dig, 24-assist performance against Buena Vista in the IIAC Tournament semifinals.

Ritchie takes 313 kills, 691 assists and 305 digs into Saturday’s IIAC Tournament final against Wartburg. She has topped 20 assists on nine occasions and has posted double-digits in kills 16 times.

Veum led the Norse with 286 kills and a .348 attack percentage despite playing in only 29 of Luther’s 33 matches this season. She topped the conference in hitting percentage at .378 while also ranking fifth in kills (3.32 per set) and fourth in blocks (0.80 per set). Overall, Veum posted a .348 attack percentage and averaged 0.89 blocks and 3.14 kills per set, figures that ranked second, third and fifth, respectively, among all IIAC players.

She posted the conference’s highest single-match attack percentage of the season against Simpson on September 22 when she had 17 kills in 21 total attacks without an error (.810).

Veum was named IIAC Offensive Player of the Week on September 17.

Ritchie and Veum are the first IIAC Freshmen of the Year from their respective schools.

Ness Named Coach of the Year — Loras head coach Jenna Ness was voted the 2015 Iowa Conference Volleyball Coach of the Year by her peers. Ness has led a Duhawk squad with one senior to a 22-12 mark overall heading into Saturday’s Iowa Conference Tournament championship match against Wartburg. Loras took second in the conference with a 5-2 mark in league play, rebounding from a 2-5 IIAC record in 2014. The Duhawks enter their first tournament final since 2012 on Saturday looking for their third tournament title (1990, 2008).

Loras led the Iowa Conference opponent hitting percentage (.132), blocks (1.92 per set) and digs (19.83 per set) and ranked third in assists (12.04 per set) and kills (12.92 per set). Entering the IIAC Tournament, the Duhawks ranked 14th in Division III in team digs (2,190), 16th in team total attacks (4,513), 17th in team assists (1,416) and 19th in team kills (1,508), while ranking 24th in digs per set (18.56) and team attacks per set (38.25) and 34th in assists per set (12.00).

This is Ness’ first IIAC Coach of the Year honor. It is also the fourth IIAC Volleyball Coach of the Year honor all-time for Loras (Connie Bandy Hodge, 1990; Brian Lamppa, 2002; Teresa Kehe, 2008).

All-Iowa Conference Team — The All-Iowa Conference volleyball team was also announced. Seven selections on the 15-member team have previously received all-conference honors, led by Dubuque outside hitter Klaudia Baseriak. Baseriak, the 2012 Iowa Conference Freshman of the Year, captured all-league honors for the fourth time to become just the 14th four-time all-IIAC selection and the first from Dubuque. Bardole and Coe senior setter Mackenzie Harbaugh earned their third all-conference honors, while Buena Vista sophomore outside hitter Jade Schaap, Loras junior middle blocker Danni Kennedy, Wartburg senior libero Jamie Farley and Wartburg senior middle hitter Kaity Brouwer each picked up their second all-IIAC honor.

This season's All-Iowa Conference team includes four players each from Loras and Wartburg, two apiece from Buena Vista, Coe and Luther, and one from Dubuque. The team includes eight seniors, three juniors, two sophomores and two freshmen.


# # #

2015 All-Iowa Conference Volleyball Team
Most Valuable Player — Maddie Bardole, jr., OH, Buena Vista
Co-Freshmen of the Year — Claire Ritchie, S/OH, Loras, & Emma Veum, MB, Luther
Coach of the Year — Jenna Ness, Loras
All-Conference	School	Year	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Maddie Bardole @ $ &	Buena Vista	Jr.	OH	Granger, Iowa / Woodward-Granger
Jade Schaap & !	Buena Vista	So.	OH	Doon, Iowa / Hull Western Christian
Mackenzie Harbaugh @ &	Coe	Sr.	S	Manchester, Iowa / West Delaware
Brianna Smith ^	Coe	Sr.	RS	Urbandale, Iowa / Urbandale
Klaudia Baseriak # @ &	Dubuque	Sr.	OH	Hainesville, Ill. / Grayslake
Claire Ritchie	Loras	Fr.	S/RSH	Lakeville, Minn. / Lakeville South
Haley Bergan	Loras	So.	L	Edgewood, Iowa / Edgewood-Colesburg
Danni Kennedy % &	Loras	Jr.	MB	Dyersville, Iowa / Beckman
Therese Schultz	Loras	Jr.	MB	New Lenox, Ill. / Lincoln-Way West
Emma Veum	Luther	Fr.	MB	Eagan, Minn. / Eastview
Lindsey Ryan %	Luther	Sr.	S	Eagan, Minn. / Eastview
Jamie Farley &	Wartburg	Sr.	L	Cedar Falls, Iowa / Cedar Falls
Krystal Graves	Wartburg	Sr.	RSH	Cedar Falls, Iowa / Cedar Falls
Kaity Brouwer &	Wartburg	Sr.	MH	Dike, Iowa / Dike-New Hartford
Libby Creery	Wartburg	Sr.	MH	West Union, Iowa / North Fayette
Honorable Mention	School	Year	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Laura Barry	Buena Vista	So.	S	Weston, Neb. / Wahoo
Emily Mathews &	Buena Vista	So.	MB	Clear Lake, Iowa / Garner-Hayfield
Jenna Dille	Central	So.	MH	Carlisle, Iowa / Carlisle
Olivia Leisinger	Coe	Jr.	MH	Council Bluffs, Iowa / Abraham Lincoln
Taylor Gaide	Luther	So.	L	Pueblo, Colo. / West
Key
! – 2014 Iowa Conference Freshman of the Year
& - 2014 All-Iowa Conference
^ - 2014 Honorable Mention
$ - 2013 Iowa Conference Freshman of the Year
@ - 2013 All-Iowa Conference
% - 2013 Honorable Mention
# - 2012 All-Iowa Conference / Freshman of the Year