Wednesday, December 6, 2023
by Evan O'Kelly, Assistant Commissioner For Communications

PORTLAND, Ore. – Three volleyball players from the Great Northwest Athletic Conference were recognized as All-Americans for the 2023 campaign as the American Volleyball Coaches Association unveiled its top honors on Wednesday.

GNAC Player of the Year Hannah Hair of Seattle Pacific became just the second Falcon since the school joined the GNAC in 2001 to claim second-team honors, joining 2010 AVCA second-team All-American Nikki Lowell. Fellow first-team all-conference selections Tia Andaya and Emma Daoud-Hebert of Central Washington each earned honorable mention All-American status.

The Division II leader in blocks per set with 1.63, Hair became the first GNAC player to win both the Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards. The senior piloted the Falcons to a record of 22-5 overall and 16-2 in conference play, helping the team win its fourth GNAC championship title and first since the 2011 season. SPU advanced to the NCAA West Region Championships for the first time in more than a decade, falling to Cal State LA 3-1 in the opening round on Nov. 30.

Hair, who was an honorable mention All-American in 2021, joined Anna Herold (2010-11) as the other Falcon to earn multiple All-America honors since SPU joined the conference. She is among a total of five total SPU players to achieve the top national honor since the school joined the league.

Andaya and Daoud-Hebert each played key roles in the Wildcats reaching the NCAA postseason for the 11th consecutive year, as CWU went 20-7 overall and finished as the GNAC runner-up with a league record of 14-4. Andaya ranked second in the conference with 9.12 assists per set and sixth in the conference with 1.04 blocks per set, while finishing her career as the GNAC’s all-time leader in triple-doubles with 14. Andaya made it three straight seasons with All-America recognition, after earning third-team in 2021 and honorable mention last season.

Daoud-Hebert had success similar to Hair’s at the net, ranking second nationally with 1.41 blocks per set. In addition to ranking second in the conference in that category, Daoud-Hebert was third in the GNAC in hitting percentage at .346. The senior was a second-team All-American in 2022, as she earned the honor for the second year in-a-row.

Since joining the GNAC in 2001, CWU has garnered a total of 27 All-America honors under head coach Mario Andaya.