PSUAC Names Poissant Volleyball Player Of The Year; Selects Four To All-Conference Teams
MEDIA, Pa. -- Penn State Brandywine junior Nikki Poissant (Aston, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara) was tabbed as the Penn State University Athletic Conference Volleyball Player of the Year on Friday by the league's coaches, while four Lions claimed all-conference awards.
Poissant was a First Team All-PSUAC selection, while senior Emily Battista (Broomall, Pa./Marple Newtown) landed on the second team. Sophomores Halee Kusner (Aston, Pa./Sun Valley) and Sullivan Stark (Middletown, Del./William Penn) both collected honorable mention awards.
Poissant, a starter in all 26 matches, is now a three-time all-PSUAC standout having earned two-straight first team honors after receiving second team accolades as a freshman. She is the second consecutive conference player of the year from Brandywine after Miranda Biondi claimed the award last year.
The conference leader in kills and aces, Poissant recorded team highs with 270 kills, 65 aces and 352 digs. She tied for fifth nationally in aces, while ranking in the top 30 in both kills and digs.
Poissant recorded six 20-dig performances and four 15-kill efforts this fall. She enters her senior season needing 292 digs to reach 1,000 for her career.
Battista ranked second on the team with 319 digs. She added 33 assists and 14 aces, while playing in all 26 matches. During her four-year career, Battista appeared in 96 matches for Brandywine, tallying 625 digs and 149 kills.
Stark topped the league and stands 12th nationally with 798 assists. She averaged a PSUAC-high 8.9 assists per set, while also adding 163 digs, 32 kills and 26 blocks. Stark reached 30 assists 14 times in 26 matches, including a career-best 52-assist match in a five-set victory at Penn State Mont Alto in September.
Kusner reached the 200-kill mark with 214, the fifth-highest total in the PSUAC. The 2015 PSUAC Newcomer of the Year, Kusner finished second on the team with 31 blocks and added 28 digs. During 52 career matches over the last two seasons, Kusner owns 405 kills.
Brandywine finished the season with an 18-8 record, its fourth consecutive 18-win season.
