Four Panthers Named to AVCA All-Midwest Region

AVCA All-Region Squads

For the first time in program history, the University of Northern Iowa has four players on the American Volleyball Coaches Association's All-Midwest region squad.

The previous school-best for all-region picks was set in 2002 and 2010 when the Panthers had three first-team selections. This year, UNI also has three first-team picks in senior Heather Hook, junior Piper Thomas and sophomore Karlie Taylor, but also had junior Bri Weber named to the honorable mention all-region squad.

Heather Hook - Senior, Setter, Grundy Center, Iowa
Missouri Valley Conference's Setter of the Year ... ranks second in the nation in total assists (1,530) ... leads the MVC in assists/set (11.68) ... became the sixth UNI setter to reach 4,000 career assists ... only the 23rd MVC player to surpass 4,000 assists ... set a career-high with 64 assists in a five-set win over No. 19 Missouri ... has tallied 10 50-plus assist matches in 2017 ... set a career-high with eight kills in a five-set win over Valparaiso ... set a career-high with 23 assists in a five-set match vs. Illinois State ... has registered 11 double-doubles this season ... ranks fourth on UNI's all-time assist list with 4,288 career assists ... earned first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors in 2017 ... named to the MVC Scholar-Athlete honorable mention squad (majoring in finance, economics, real estate) ... Co-MVP of Omaha Challenge when UNI knocked off Nebraska, 3-1.

Piper Thomas - Junior, Middle Hitter, Jesup, Iowa
Three-time MVC Player of the Week in 2017 ... ranks first on the team in kills (524 - 4.00/set), blocks (119) and hitting percentage (.360) ... top hitter in MVC matches only (.403) ... ranks second in the league in MVC matches only in kills/set (4.28) ... has posted six 20-plus kill matches this season ... only player in the country to have a match with 28 kills, no attack errors (.563) and 10 blocks (vs. Illinois State in the MVC Tournament semifinal) ... she posted 20 kills in four-set matches on three occasions (20 vs. No. 18 USC; 20 vs. Missouri State; 28 at Illinois State) ... three-time MVC Player of the Week honoree in 2017 ... Thomas was named to the first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference squad ... her 524 kills ranks as the fourth-best single-season total in UNI history ... her 604.5 points is the fifth-highest single-season total in program history ... All-Tournament Team Austin Peay's Governors Challenge and 2017 MVC Tournament ... MVP of Austin Peay's Governors Challenge (UNI defeated Missouri, Middle Tennessee, Austin Peay) ... MVC Scholar-Athlete Team selection (majoring in movement & exercise science).

Karlie Taylor - Sophomore, Outside Hitter, Eddyville, Iowa
Ranks second on the team in kills (507 - 3.87/set) ... her 507 kills ranks as the sixth-best single-season total in school history ... she ranks third on the team in digs (475 - 3.63/set) ... tallied first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors for the first time in her career ... set a program record for attacks in a season with 1,373 ... led the team in double-doubles (26) ... All-Tournament team selection at Creighton's Bluejay Invitational and Austin Peay's Governors Challenge.

Bri Weber - Junior, Outside Hitter, Dike, Iowa
First-team All-Missouri Valley Conference selection for the second straight year ... leads UNI in service aces (31) ... ranks second on the team in digs (514 – 3.92/set) ... ranks third on the team in kills (426 – 3.25/set) ... had 1,348 attacks (second-most ever in a single season by a UNI player) ... All-Tournament selection at the UMKC Kangaroo Klassic ... became one of eight UNI Panthers all-time to earn 1,000 digs and 1,000 kills in a career.

UNI completed its 2017 season at 27-9 overall and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament. It marks the 19th time that the Panthers have posted 27 or more wins in a single season. UNI leads the nation in kills per set (15.24), team assists (1,857), team digs (2,581) and team kills (1,997).

UNI's All-Time AVCA All-Region Honorees
1988 - Bobbi Becker (1st team)
1989 - Bobbi Becker (1st team)
1990 - Denise Cuttell (2nd team)
1991 - Chris Less (2nd team)
1994 - Kara Galer (2nd team)
1995 - Kara Galer (1st team); Kate Galer (1st team)
1999 - Shannon Perry (1st team); Alexandra Auker (1st team)
2001 - Kim McCaffrey (1st team); Molly O'Brien (1st team)
2002 - Molly O'Brien (1st team); Kim Kester (1st team), Jill Arganbright (1st team)
2003 - Molly O'Brien (1st team); Jill Arganbright (1st team)
2008 - Ashton Stelken (HM)
2009 - Bre Payton (1st team); Ellie Blankenship (HM)
2010 - Ellie Blankenship (1st team); Bre Payton (1st team), Michelle Burow (1st team)
2011 - Bre Payton (2nd team); Krista DeGeest (HM)
2012 - Krista DeGeest (HM)
2013 - Shelby Kintzel (1st team); Macy Ubben (HM)
2014 - Kayla Haneline (HM)
2015 - Kayla Haneline (HM)
2016 - Kayla Haneline (1st team)
2017 - Heather Hook (1st team); Karlie Taylor (1st team); Piper Thomas (1st team); Bri Weber (HM)

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