DALLAS – No. 20 WKU secured its best undefeated start in program history at 9-0 with another pair of sweeps in league play over the weekend, led by Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week Lauren Matthews and three-time Setter of the Week Nadia Dieudonne. Rice earned two sweeps of its own, the Owls’ fifth and sixth in a row, with junior Anota Adekunle collecting Defensive Player of the Week honors. Freshman of the Week went to Middle Tennessee’s Amelia Van Der Werff, the program’s first winner since the award became active in 2015. All C-USA weekly honors are presented by Surf & Turf Golf.

C-USA Offensive Player of the Week – Lauren Matthews, WKU, Jr., Indianapolis, IN
Matthews took her game to another level in WKU’s (9-0, 4-0 C-USA East) back-to-back sweeps of Charlotte (5-4, 3-3 C-USA East). The junior powered 6.50 kills per set on a blistering .630 hitting percentage along with an average 7.42 points and 1.17 blocks in the series. She registered 14 kills at a .400 hitting clip on Sunday, returning the next day to connect on 23 of her first 24 swings. She finished the match with a career-high 25 kills and her .828 attack rate marked the second-best percentage of all NCAA players with at least 20 attempts this season. More impressively, Matthews’ 25 kills are the most in a three-set match across the country so far this year.

C-USA Defensive Player of the Week – Anota Adekunle, Rice, Jr., Humble, TX
Adekunle played a key role in helping Rice (7-3, 6-0 C-USA West) defend its flawless record in conference play with its fifth and sixth sweeps, this week against UAB (4-5, 3-3 C-USA West). The Owls also completed the series sweep of Southern Miss with a 3-0 victory on Tuesday. The middle blocker racked up 12 stuffs at a rate of 1.33 per set, including five in the UAB series finale. She also added five digs in her defensive efforts. She was just as effective on the offensive side of the ball, pitching in 23 kills on a .528 hitting percentage and four service aces. Her performance on the week also included 3.72 points per set and a pair of matches with .600+ hitting percentages.

C-USA Setter of the Week – Nadia Dieudonne, WKU, Sr., Louisville, KY
A battle of the East Division’s first and second place teams saw Dieudonne pace the WKU offense efficiently. The senior setter guided the Toppers to a collective .420 hitting percentage, including a season-best .483 rate in Monday’s sweep as 51 percent of her total sets were converted to kills. She amassed 73 helpers across the six sets, a rate of 12.17 per frame, with 34 assists on Sunday and another 39 in match two. Dieudonne also posted 1.17 digs, 0.67 blocks and 0.67 points per set to extend the team’s streak of 22-consecutive set wins.

C-USA Freshman of the Week – Amelia Van Der Werff, Middle Tennessee, Fr., Leavenworth, KS
Van Der Werff contributed all over the court as Middle Tennessee (1-4, 1-2 C-USA East) split its conference series with Old Dominion (4-3, 2-2 C-USA East), both becoming five-set thrillers. The Blue Raiders took the set one win with the newcomer providing 10 kills on a .571 hitting clip, three digs and a pair of blocks. On Monday, Van Der Werff muscled her second double-digit kill performance with 14 coming on the strength of a .522 attack percentage. In addition, she recorded three aces, three digs and two more blocks. With 24 kills combined in the two matches, the freshman now leads Middle Tennessee with 53 on the season. 

2021 C-USA Offensive Players of the Week
J26          Paige Briggs, WKU
F2           Bianca Ejesieme, UTSA
F9           Nicole Lennon, Rice
F16         Cheyenne Jones, UTEP
F23         Lauren Matthews, WKU

2021 C-USA Defensive Players of the Week
J26          Sophie Whalen, Charlotte
F2           Duquesne Moratzka, Southern Miss
F9           Sophie Whalen, Charlotte
F16         Lara Kretschmer, Charlotte
F23         Anota Adekunle, Rice

2021 C-USA Setters of the Week
J26          Nadia Dieudonne, WKU
F2           Nadia Dieudonne, WKU
F9           Carly Graham, Rice
F16         Kaliegh Skopal, North Texas
F23         Nadia Dieudonne, WKU

2021 C-USA Freshmen of the Week
J26          Emani' Foster, Charlotte
F2           Emani' Foster, Charlotte
F9           Emani' Foster, Charlotte
F16         Emani’ Foster, Charlotte
F23         Amelia Van Der Werff, Middle Tennessee