CLEVELAND – After going 18-0 in conference play to win the MAC Regular Season Title, the Western Michigan volleyball team dominated the league's specialty awards and All-Conference teams, which were announced on Saturday. Senior setter Logan Case led the way, earning both the MAC Player of the Year and Setter of the Year awards. Fellow senior Andelyn Simkins took home the Defensive Player of the Year, while WMU head coach Colleen Munson was selected as the Coach of the Year. Additionally, a league-high six Broncos earned All-MAC selections, with Case, Simkins and Maggie King landing on the First Team, and the trio of Mary Clare Brusek, Anna Calcagno and Keona Salesman all earning places on the Second Team.
 
Case racked up 11 of the 13 MAC West Setter of the Week honors during the regular season on the way to the 10th MAC Player of the Year award in program history. The senior also became the first three-time Setter of the Year award winner in conference history and just the second to be named both the Player of the Year and Setter of the Year in the same season. Earning a spot on the All-MAC First Team for the fourth year in a row, Case had 33 or more assists in every contest during conference play and topped the league with 12.45 assists per set. The Brown and Gold hit .300 or better eight times in MAC play, and through her distribution, WMU posted a .285 hitting percentage, averaged 14.15 assists per set and totaled 15.08 kills per set in MAC matches, all of which led the league. The Maineville, Ohio, native also averaged 2.33 digs per set in conference play, with six of her eight double-doubles coming against MAC foes.
 
Munson earned the league's Coach of the Year honor for the second time, having also won the award in 2014, the last time Western Michigan reached the NCAA Tournament. Under Munson's tutelage, the Broncos went 18-0 in conference play to capture the program's first MAC Regular Season Title since 2008. This year's squad is the first MAC team to go undefeated in league play since 2006, and the first to go 18-0 in the conference since 1993. WMU's current 18-match winning streak is its longest since 2000, and the team's 28 overall wins match her highest at the helm of the Brown and Gold back in 2008. The victory over Ball State on Nov. 4, which clinched the regular season conference crown for the Broncos, was also Munson's 200th MAC win, making her just the fifth head coach in league history to reach that milestone.
 
Simkins is the fourth different Bronco to be named the MAC Defensive Player of the Year and first since Kathleen Reilly in 2019. The senior won seven MAC West Defensive Player of the Week awards during the regular season, four of which came during league play, on the way to an All-MAC First Team selection, her first All-Conference nod. Simkins racked up double-digit digs in every MAC contest and registered 20 or more six times. She finished second in the league in conference action in both total digs (320) and digs per set (5.33), to help Western Michigan's defense lead the MAC in both opposing hitting percentage (.181) and digs per set (17.58). The Schoolcraft, Mich., native excelled on serve receive as well, making just nine errors (0.15/set) and posting a .963 reception percentage (233-for-242) against MAC opponents.
 
Like Case, King was selected to the All-MAC First Team for the fourth consecutive season. A two-time MAC West Offensive Player of the Week honoree in league play, the graduate student tallied double-digit kills in 17 of WMU's 18 conference matches, including a season-high 21 in a win over Buffalo on Oct. 27. During MAC play, King was fifth in kills per set (3.92) and sixth in points per set (4.42). The Cincinnati native hit .300 or better in six conference contests and posted a .268 hitting percentage in MAC play.
 
Brusek picked up her first All-Conference nod, earning a spot on the Second Team. The sophomore notched double-digit kills five times in conference play, including a career-high 19 in a win over Ball State on Nov. 3. Brusek hit .400 or better in 11 of WMU's 18 MAC matches, including posting an .857 mark (12-0-14) in a straight-set win over Kent State on Oct. 5. The Evergreen Park, Ill., native boasted the second-highest hitting percentage in the league against MAC foes at .431.
 
Also a first-time All-Conference honoree, Calcagno was selected to the Second Team after tallying double-digit kills 10 times in conference play. On Oct. 28 against Akron, the senior hammered down a career high 20 kills as the Broncos topped the Zips in four sets. In conference action, Calcagno finished 10th in the MAC in both kills per set (3.25) and points per set (3.88), and boasted a hitting percentage of .300 or better six times. She also recorded double-digit digs eight times, including a career-high 20 on Nov. 3 against Ball State, in league play for an average of 2.83 per set. The Saint Charles, Ill., native registered eight double-doubles during the regular season, five of which came against MAC opponents.
 
Salesman got hot down the stretch for the Broncos on the way to an All-MAC Second Team selection, her first All-Conference honor. Named the MAC West Offensive Player of the Week four times, the senior tallied double-digit kills in eight of Western Michigan's last 10 conference matches. On Nov. 10 at Toledo, Salesman notched 18 kills on a .533 hitting percentage as the Broncos clinched the outright Regular Season Title. During conference play, the Coldwater, Mich., native averaged 3.09 kills and 3.27 points per set. She also hit .300 or better in seven league contests and posted a .259 hitting percentage in conference play.

The full list of award winners and All-MAC honorees is below.
 
2023 MAC Volleyball All-MAC Teams & Specialty Award Winners
Coach of the Year: Colleen Munson, Western Michigan
Player of the Year: Logan Case, Senior, Setter, Western Michigan
Defensive Player of the Year: Andelyn Simkins, Senior, Libero, Western Michigan
Freshman of the Year: Aniya Kennedy, Outside Hitter, Ball State
Setter of the Year: Logan Case, Senior, Western Michigan
 
All-MAC First Team 
Marie Plitt, Graduate Student, Middle Blocker, Ball State
Megan Wielonski, Junior, Setter, Ball State
Aniya Kennedy, Redshirt Freshman, Middle Blocker, Ball State
Lauryn Hovey, Sophomore, Opposite/Setter, Bowling Green
Mandy Leigh, Junior, Setter, Buffalo
Abby Leigh, Fifth Year, Outside Hitter/Middle Blocker, Buffalo
Courtney Okwara, Fifth Year, Middle Blocker, Buffalo
Katrin Trebichavska, Senior, Outside Hitter, Buffalo
Anna Kharchynska, Sophomore, Opposite, Ohio
Caitlin O'Farrell, Graduate Student, Middle Blocker, Ohio
Taylor Alt, Senior, Outside Hitter, Toledo
Logan Case, Senior, Setter, Western Michigan
Maggie King, Graduate Student, Outside Hitter, Western Michigan
Andelyn Simkins, Senior, Libero, Western Michigan
 
All-MAC Second Team
Kat Mandly, Junior, Outside Hitter, Bowling Green
Claire Ammeraal, Sophomore, Setter, Central Michigan
Callie Minshew, Graduate Student, Outside Hitter, Eastern Michigan
Ryann Jaqua, Fifth Year, Libero, Toledo
Anna Calcagno, Senior, Outside Hitter, Western Michigan
Mary Clare Brusek, Sophomore, Middle Blocker, Western Michigan
Keona Salesman, Senior, Outside Hitter, Western Michigan
 
All-Freshman Team
Eliska Vytiskova, Setter, Akron
Aniya Kennedy, Middle Blocker, Ball State
Camryn Wise, Middle Blocker, Ball State
Manoela Forlin, Outside Hitter/Right Side, Buffalo
Logan Henderson, Outside Hitter, Kent State
Kam Hunt, Outside Hitter, Ohio
Macy Hatkevich, Setter, Toledo

Following a perfect 18-0 record in conference play, Western Michigan has earned the No. 1 seed for the MAC Volleyball Championship, which begins on Saturday at WMU's University Arena. The Broncos have a bye into Sunday's semifinal round, and will play the winner of the quarterfinal contest between No. 4 seed Ohio and No. 5 seed Toledo. The championship match is slated for 6:30 pm on Monday night. Tickets for the 2023 MAC Volleyball Championship are on sale now at wmubroncos.com/tickets.