University of Northern Iowa Athletics
Dykstra tabbed as MVC Player of the Week
9/22/2026 12:00:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Panther senior earns first weekly honor of season after strong offensive outings against Wichita State.
ST. LOUIS --- UNI senior outside hitter/opposite Lily Dykstra has been named the Missouri Valley Conference's (MVC) Player of the Week, as announced by the league office on Tuesday.
The selection is Dykstra's first weekly honor of the season and second of her career after earning MVC Player of the Week honors once last season UNI has now been recognized with at least one conference weekly honor in each of the first four weeks of the 2026 season.
A Urbandale, Iowa native, Dykstra led the Panther offense with 5.14 kills per set in a pair of home wins over Wichita State last weekend to open the home portion of UNI's 2026 schedule. Dykstra posted a 17-kill, ten-dig double-double in last Friday's outing against the Shockers, and followed it up with 19 terminations on Saturday, finishing the weekend with a .361 hitting percentage on 83 attempts.
In a weekend where Northern Iowa dished out 16 total service aces, including 13 in Saturday's four-set win, Dykstra contributed to the Panthers' success at the line with three total aces for the two-match series. She also tallied four total blocks against the Shockers.
In addition to Bixby, Evansville's Savannah Gogel was named the MVC's Defensive Player of the Week, while Southern Illinois' Jillian Shaneyfelt was named MVC Libero of the Week.
Dykstra and the Panthers return to action tonight as they open Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) play at Drake. First serve is set for 6 p.m. CT at the Knapp Center in Des Moines, with live coverage available on ESPN+ and the Panther Sports Radio Network (106.5 FM Corn Country / 93.5 HD-2).
UNI volleyball action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Volleyball), X (@UNIVolleyball) and on Instagram (@univolleyball). The full 2026 schedule and roster, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.
