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[Graphic courtesy of Washburn Athletics]

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Six members of the No. 25-ranked Washburn University volleyball team were recognized as All-MIAA selections by the conference on Wednesday morning, led by three-time first-team pick Jalyn Stevenson.

Washburn senior Jalyn Stevenson has been named to the All-MIAA volleyball first team for the third straight season. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]

A senior outside hitter, Stevenson receive her fourth All-MIAA honor in four years, earning honorable mention as a freshman. In 2024 she has played and started in all 26 matches to lead the team with 286 kills (2.92 per set) while hitting .196 and is second on the team with 298 digs (3.04 per set). She has added 51 blocks while serving 51 aces on the year. Among the conference she ranks top-20 in kills, kills per set, points per set and total digs. Her 16 matches with double-digit kills are the most on the team.

Washburn juniors Alex Dvorak and Corinna McMullen and sophomore Taylor Rottinghaus were named to the All-MIAA second team while Austin Broadie and Bella Limback received honorable mention.

Former Washburn Rural star Taylor Russell (3), a Missouri Western sophomore, has been named to the All-MIAA volleyball first team. [File photo/TSN]

Former Washburn Rural state champion Taylor Russell, a Missouri Western sophomore, was named to the All-MIAA first team after being a seond-team pick and an All-MIAA Tournament pick as a freshman.

Russell was named a unanimous All-MIAA first-team selection after recording the third-highest number of kills in league play, achieving a total of 198 kills (3.30 AVG/S). Additionally, Russell contributed the third-highest point total in the conference in the regular season, amassing a total of 227 in 60 sets.

Dvorak lands on the second team as a middle hitter in her first season wearing blue while starting in all 26 matches. The junior is the most efficient hitter on the Ichabods, slashing .381 for the year, and is second with 215 kills (2.19 per set).

Defensively, Dvorak also leads the team in blocks with 126, including 14 solo stops. Her hitting percentage is tops in the conference and she ranks second among all MIAA players in both blocks and blocks per set. Nationally, she ranks in the top-25 in all three categories. She has hit over .400 in 13 of 26 matches on the year.

McMullen earns second team honors for a second straight season after receiving honorable mention as a freshman. The junior leads the passing attack for Washburn with 620 assists (6.39 per set) while ranking third on the team with 231 digs (2.38 per set). Her 41 service aces also lead the team while playing all 26 matches with 24 starts. She ranks third in the MIAA in aces per set and total service aces while sitting eighth in both total assists and assists per set. She has a team-high 13 double-doubles, including one in five of the last six matches.

Rottinghaus, a former Shawnee Heights star, is a second-team selection for the second straight year. Rottinghaus has 498 digs (5.08 per set) to anchor the Washburn back line on defense while playing in all 26 matches. She has a .962 reception percentage on 523 attempts while adding 80 assists and 26 aces on the offensive end. Among the MIAA she is sixth in both total digs and digs per set while ranking in the top-40 nationally in both categories. She scooped a career-high 40 digs earlier in the year against Nebraska Kearney.

Broadie earns All-MIAA honorable mention honors for the first time in her career after playing in 26 matches and making 11 starts. The senior is third on the team with 210 kills (2.14 per set) and a .254 hitting percentage. Defensively, she has made 62 total blocks while adding 50 digs. She has seven matches with double-digits kills.

Limback also received All-MIAA honorable mention for the first time in her career as a junior. She is second on the team with a .359 hitting percentage while accumulating 165 kills (1.72 per set). On the defensive end she is second on the squad with 95 blocks while adding 55 digs. She is one of three players to start in all 26 matches during the regular season. Among the MIAA she is third in hitting percentage and eighth in total blocks. Nationally she is top-100 in both categories.

Former Silver Lake standout Camilla Ossola (18), an Emporia State junior, received All-MIAA volleyball honorable mention. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Former Silver Lake standout Camilla Ossola, an Emporia State junior, also received All-MIAA honorable mention.

Washburn enters postseason play as the No. 4 seed in the MIAA Championship Tournament and will face No. 5 Northwest Missouri on Thursday evening at 7:30 p.m. in St. Joseph, Mo. at the Civic Arena.

2024 ALL-MIAA VOLLEYBALL

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn University athletic director Loren Ferre had nothing but kind words to say about long-time Ichabods football coach Craig Schurig's contributions to the university in a Wednesday meeting with local media members.

But Ferre said WU believed it a time for a change after announcing Monday afternoon that Schurig would not return in 2025.

Washburn athletic director Loren Ferre said the university will move as quickly as possible to get a new football coach in place after Monday's firing of veteran Ichabod coach Craig Schurig. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

"We made the decision on Monday that we needed to make a change in the head coaching position,'' Ferre said. "I just think it was a decision we made that was best for the program at this time. Obviously the last two years we haven't been successful (in) win-loss record. This past year we had a lot of close losses, but still the name of the game is winning and we just felt we needed to make a change to improve that record.''

Schurig wrapped up his 23rd year at the school and 22nd football season as Washburn's head coach last Saturday with a 35-28 road win over Northeastern State, finishing a 3-8 season which included five one-possession losses, including four losses by three or fewer points and two one-point defeats. The Ichabods posted a 2-9 record in 2023 after a 7-4 mark in 2022 and a trip to the NCAA Division II playoffs in 2021 (9-3).

Schurig is the all-time winningest coach in program history with a record of 142-109 (.566) and went 122-91 (.603) against MIAA opponents and won the MIAA regular-season championship outright in 2005. Also that year the program recorded its first 10-win season.

"Craig over the years has just been great for the community and for Washburn,'' Ferre said. "When he came here we didn't have near the facilities we have now. He came here on a promise that we would get this built and we would get things done, like the renovations to the football stadium, the weight room, the locker room, a variety of things and he just believed that we would do those things and we got them accomplished and he was a big part of that and has had a big impact on this program and in the community.''