PORTLAND, Ore. – When Hannah Hair elevates her 6-foot-1 frame off the court, eyes on the volleyball, hands aiming at it, chances are it's going to find its way down …
 
… whether she's killing it or blocking it.
 
The Seattle Pacific middle blocker did plenty of both this fall, and did it all so well that she collected not just one, but two major postseason awards on Tuesday.
 
 

Hair was named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Year, and also was named the Defensive Player of the Year.
 
It is the first time in GNAC history that one player has won both awards in the same season.
 
"It says a lot about her stats, but it doesn't tell the whole story of what she has done in the practice program, being dedicated to her craft and to her teammates, and just doing whatever we ask of her," head coach Jason Rhine said. "We really appreciate her contributions on and off the court."
 
But wait. There's more for the NCAA-bound Falcons.
 
Joining Hair on the All-GNAC first team are outside hitter Sarah Brachvogel and middle blocker Allison Wilks. Emily Tulino made the honorable mention list at setter.
 
And, Jason Rhine, who guided SPU to a 22-4 record, its first GNAC title since 2011 and its first NCAA qualifying berth, also since 2011, was named the conference's Coach of the Year.
 
Hair made the first team for the third consecutive year. Wilks was honorable mention last season, and Tulino was honorable mention in 2021. Brachvogel is a first-time All-GNAC choice.





IT ALL ADDS UP … TO 156
Hair quite simply has been dominant at her position right from the very first match of the season when she had three blocks and an error -free hitting effort (7 kills on 15 attacks) in a 3-0 sweep of 2022 NCAA qualifier Lewis at the Seaside Invitational.

 

For Hair, three blocks is a quieter kind of day. As the season went along, it wasn't unusual to have five or more in a match. In fact, there were five matches when Hair had double-digit blocks. During a five-match stretch from Oct. 19 (a 3-2 win at Central Washington) through Nov. 2 (a 3-2 win at Simon Fraser), she had one match of 11 total blocks (tying her career high), two of 10, and two of nine.
 
Heading into the NCAAs, Hair has 156 total blocks – 41 more than her previous single-season high of 115 in 2021. Her 1.66 per-set average leads all of Division II. In fact, she took the D2 lead in that category in late September and has been in the No. 1 spot ever since.
 
She was named the GNAC Defensive Player of the Week three times.

"She's really dedicated and works hard every match," Rhine said. "She also just has great instincts to where the hitter's hitting and what she might be able to take away, or even reacting at the last second to what they're doing. She has a great combination of reading and reacting to help her get some additional blocks and some smart swings, as well."
 
When it was time for offense, Hair hammered 155 kills at .317 hitting accuracy. She had six error-free matches, one of which came on Sept. 2 in a 3-0 sweep of Cal State San Marcos to finish the Seaside Invite. Hair had 10 kills on 12 attacks in that one, an .833 percentage that tied the single-match school record.
 
BIG NUMBERS FOR BRACHVOGEL, WILKS AND TULINO

 

Brachvogel came through with some of her best performances toward the end of the season. She recorded double-digit kills in each of the last eight matches – a stretch that started with 21 at Northwest Nazarene on Oct. 21, and included 19 in the GNAC title-clinching match against Saint Martin's.
 
Her total of 332 kills was more than the 224 Brachvogel had through the first three years of her career combined, and included her career 500th. Her .223 hitting percentage was by far a single-season career best. She also recorded six kill-dig double-doubles – the first of her career.
 
"It has been really fun to see her take a big jump from last year in terms of production and just reliability on our team knowing that she can do things in a lot of different situations," Rhine said. "Left front, right front, back-row attacks – she has done a little bit of everything offensively. She passes, serves well, and plays defense. It has been cool to see her step into that leadership role as a six-rotation outside and get things done for our team."
 
 

Wilks has been as reliable as it gets when talking about accurate hitting. She comes into the NCAA Tournament at .417 with 157 kills and just 29 errors on 307attacks. She has nine error-free matches, including a stretch of three in a row during the first half of October. She is on pace to finish as the first full-season 400 hitter in program history.
 
In addition, Wilks has 87 total blocks and has sent a team-leading 37 service aces across the net.
 
"It has been fun to see her be very consistent that way," Rhine said. "She has always been a smart blocker and a good defender, as well, and she serves very aggressively. It's great to see her get recognized as first team and how other teams see the impact she has been making on this program."
 
 

From the time she first took the court as a Falcons freshman, Tulino has been a model of steadiness at setter. She racked up a single-season career best 554 assists, including the 1,500th of her career. She had a season-high 32 against Saint Martin's last Thursday.
 
Tulino also is a big factor on the serve with 30 aces.
 
"Her teammates know she's going to work hard on the court and is going to find a way to set our hitters up for success," Rhine said. "She's one of our hardest workers – full effort, good defender, runs after balls – that's who we know she is."
 
 

Laying out the game plan for all of that was Rhine, After the Falcons went 15-13 last season and barely missed making the NCAAs, this year's team put together an 11-match winning streak, a seven-match streak, and finished the regular season by winning its last three in a row.
 
The Falcons were among the GNAC's top three in highest hitting percentage, assists, blocks, aces, and lowest opponents' hitting percentage.
 
"Our team has done a great job of maximizing their performance this year and hopefully, I've been able to come alongside and support them and help them the best I can," Rhine said. "I appreciate the recognition from the other coaches. But mostly, it's our team and everything they've accomplished. So we're excited for them and excited for the next couple weeks."
 
The Falcons will head to California next week for the NCAA West Regionals at Cal State San Bernardino. SPU was announced on Monday as the No. 5 seed in the eight-team tournament, and will face No. 4 Cal State Los Angeles in a first-round match on Thursday, Nov. 30, at noon.

 

2023 GNAC VOLLEYBALL ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM Player of the Year: Hannah Hair, Seattle Pacific Coach of the Year: Jason Rhine, Seattle Pacific Defensive Player of the Year: Hannah Hair, Seattle Pacific Freshman of the Year: Sirena Peredo, Saint Martin's Newcomer of the Year: Lily Stewart, Alaska
FIRST TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
Name	School	Pos.	Ht.	Yr.	Hometown
*!+ Hannah Hair	Seattle Pacific	MB	6-1	Sr.	Walla Walla, Wash.
*!+ Tia Andaya	Central Washington	S/OH	5-9	Sr.	Ellensburg, Wash.
* Sarah Brachvogel	Seattle Pacific	OH	6-0	Sr.	Mukilteo, Wash.
*^+ Hannah Stires	Central Washington	L	5-5	Jr.	Nine Mile Falls, Wash.
*^ Jocelyn Sherman	Simon Fraser	OH	5-10	Jr.	Victoria, B.C.
* Devyn Oestreich	W. Washington	OH	6-0	So.	Olympia, Wash.
* Karla Soto	Saint Martin's	S	5-7	Sr.	Nogales, Mexico
* Madison Hornback	Western Oregon	OH	5-10	Jr.	Oregon City, Ore.
^ Allison Wilks	Seattle Pacific	MB	6-1	Sr.	Bothell, Wash.
Caroline McMahon	NW Nazarene	L	5-7	Sr.	Medford, Ore.
Karli Nielson	Alaska	OH	5-11	Jr.	South Weber, Utah
Scottie Ellsworth	Central Washington	OPP	6-2	So.	Kent, Wash.
!+ Brooke Dexter	Simon Fraser	OPP	6-2	Jr.	Anchorage, Alaska
! Emma Daoud-Hebert	Central Washington	MB	6-0	Jr.	Woodinville, Wash.

HONORABLE MENTION
Name	School	Pos.	Ht.	Yr.	Hometown
Nicole Blue	Alaska Anchorage	OH	5-9	Sr.	Cerritos, Calif.
Sirena Peredo	Saint Martin's	DS/OH	5-7	Fr.	Tacoma, Wash.
Emily Tulino	Seattle Pacific	S/OH	5-7	Jr.	Carlsbad, Calif.
Emily Vossenkuhl	W. Washington	MB	6-1	Fr.	Ridgefield, Wash.
Kristina Head	Alaska	MB	6-0	Jr.	Lyons, Kan.
Emily Garten	Saint Martin's	OH	5-10	Fr.	Placentia, Calif.
@ Kalyn Hartmann	Simon Fraser	MB	6-2	Sr.	Langley, B.C.
Gabby Kepley	W. Washington	OPP	5-11	Jr.	Bothell, Wash.
Christine Funk	MSU Billings	L	5-4	Jr.	Choteau, Mont.