Valley City   (VCSU)  Valley City State University’s Clarissa Olson and Paige Benson were named All-Conference, and Steve Rindfleisch was named Assistant Coach of the Year during the annual North Star Athletic Association Volleyball Honors Banquet held last week.

The honors banquet was held Thursday night in La Crosse, Wis., prior to the start of the NSAA Volleyball Postseason Tournament.

Olson, a senior from Valley City, was named 1st Team All-Conference for the third straight season after leading the team with 305 kills, 105 blocks and a .346 hitting percentage. Olson set new school records for season hitting percentage (.346) and career hitting percentage (.320) this season. She broke the old season mark of .331 and career mark of .309, both of which were held by Cindy Thielen.

Benson, a sophomore from Hankinson, N.D., was name 2nd Team All-Conference on Thursday. The outside hitter totaled 232 kills and a .182 hitting percentage this season. She finished second on the team in total kills and kills per game.

Rindfleisch, who is in his fifth season at VCSU, was named the conference’s Assistant Coach of the Year. VCSU senior Autumn Johnson was named VCSU’s Champions of Character recipient as well on Thursday night.

2018 North Star Athletic Association Volleyball Postseason All-Conference & Postseason Awards

First-Team All-Conference

Name Position Year School Hometown
Lydia Xu MB Sophomore Viterbo (Wis.) Shanghai, China
Aubrey Aspen ^! MB/RS Senior Viterbo (Wis.) Sparta, Wis.
Shayla Scanlan $%! RS/MB Senior Bellevue (Neb.) Plattsmouth, Neb.
Clarissa Olson %! MB Senior Valley City State (N.D.) Valley City, N.D.
Miah Garant ! MH/RS Sophomore Viterbo (Wis.) Fort Atkinson, Wis.
Jayden Warner L Junior Mayville State (N.D.) Mayville, N.D.
Olivia Galas S Freshman Bellevue (Neb.) Bellevue, Neb.
Barbara Briceno OH/RS Senior Dakota State (S.D.) Lima, Peru
Joely Roe ! L Senior Presentation (S.D.) Filer, Idaho
Katie Frohmader OH Sophomore Viterbo (Wis.) Fort Atkinson, Wis.
Kyra Platzek OH Junior Waldorf (Iowa) Ridgeland, Wis.
Samantha Zell MH/OH Junior Dakota State (S.D.) Huron, S.D.
Madi Evans L Freshman Bellevue (Neb.) Omaha, Neb.
Kadara Marshall MB Junior Dickinson State (N.D.) Hilo, Hawaii

Second-Team All-Conference

Name Position Year School Hometown
Paige Benson OH Sophomore Valley City State (N.D.) Hankinson, N.D.
Jana Mehus S Sophomore Mayville State (N.D.) Finley, N.D.
Victoria Johnson MH Freshman Mayville State (N.D.) Roseau, Minn.
Andrea Carson OH Sophomore Bellevue (Neb.) Ord, Neb.
Chloe Jakscht S Junior Viterbo (Wis.) East Troy, Wis.
Olivia Stet OH Senior Presentation (S.D.) Henderson, Nev.
Siera Skow OH Senior Viterbo (Wis.) Hartford, Wis.
Sarah Williams OH Freshman Waldorf (Iowa) Poway, Calif.

! – 2017 NSAA Volleyball All-Conference First-Team
& – 2017 NSAA Volleyball All-Conference Second-Team
% – 2016 NSAA Volleyball All-Conference First-Team
^ – 2016 NSAA Volleyball All-Conference Second Team
$ – 2015 NSAA Volleyball All-Conference First-Team

2018 NSAA Volleyball Postseason Awards:
Player-of-the-Year:  Lydia Xu – Viterbo (Wis.)
Offensive Player-of-the-Year:  Lydia Xu – Viterbo (Wis.)
Setter-of-the-Year:  Olivia Galas – Bellevue (Neb.)
Defensive Player-of-the-Year:  Jayden Warner – Mayville State (N.D.)
Newcomer-of-the-Year:  Olivia Galas – Bellevue (Neb.)
Coach-of-the-Year:  Amy Veenhof – Dakota State (S.D.)
Assistant Coach-of-the-Year:  Steve Rindfleisch – Valley City State (N.D.)