2023-24 AUS women’s volleyball major award winners and all-stars announced
(HALIFAX, N.S.) Atlantic University Sport is pleased to announce the 2023-24 AUS women's volleyball all-stars and major award winners as selected by the conference's six head coaches following regular season play.
Saint Mary’s left side Olivia Bell has been named the AUS Most Valuable Player for the 2023-24 season.
Other major award winners include UNB’s Talia Nixon, who was named the AUS Rookie of the Year; Madison Hann from Saint Mary’s as the recipient of the Student-Athlete Community Service Award; and Acadia’s Michele Wood as the AUS Coach of the Year.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Olivia Bell, SMU Huskies
Saint Mary’s left side Olivia Bell has been named the 2023-24 AUS Women’s Volleyball Most Valuable Player.
The fifth-year Commerce student from LaHave Islands, N.S., finished the regular season leading the AUS in points (282.5), kills per set (3.13) and kills (238) in 20 games played.
The veteran added 29 service aces, 218 digs and 24 total blocks, as she led her Huskies to a second-place finish in the league standings (14-6).
In addition to her MVP selection, Bell also earned a spot as an AUS First Team All-Star.
Bell becomes the first AUS MVP from Saint Mary’s since Rachel Windhorst was named in the 2014-15 season.
She’ll now look to become the third AUS student-athlete to be named the U SPORTS Player of the Year, which was last won by Dalhousie’s Courtney Baker in 2019-20.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Talia Nixon, UNB Reds (Kristen Ryan Memorial Award)
UNB Reds outside hitter Talia Nixon has been selected as the 2023-24 recipient of the Kristen Ryan Memorial Award – given to the AUS Women’s Volleyball Rookie of the Year.
An Arts student from Fredericton, N.B., Nixon played in all 20 games for the Reds this season, finishing third on her team in kills per set (1.91), kills (143) and digs (170).
Nixon’s play helped the Reds to an 11-9 record, good for fourth place in the AUS standings and a berth in the playoffs.
In 2013, this award was renamed in honour of former Cape Breton Capers player Kristen Ryan. A five-year member of the CBU women's volleyball team, Ryan was a two-time Atlantic conference All-Star and was named the AUS Libero of the Year in 2009-10. She passed away in 2012 following a motor vehicle accident.
Nixon’s win gives the Reds back-to-back winners of the award, following Heather Benko’s Rookie of the Year win just last season. She now becomes the AUS nominee for the Mark Tennant Award for U SPORTS rookie of the year. No Atlantic conference player has ever won the national award.
STUDENT-ATHLETE COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD: Madison Hann, SMU Huskies (Erin Bursey Memorial Award)
Saint Mary’s Huskies middle Madison Hann is the 2023-24 recipient of the Erin Bursey Memorial Award, given to a women’s volleyball student-athlete who shows outstanding achievements in three areas: volleyball, academics and community involvement.
A third-year Criminology student from Conquerall Mills, N.S., Hann placed second on her team in total blocks (45) and third in service aces (21).
In the classroom, the L’nu student-athlete has held a GPA over 4.15 for three years running, earning Academic All-Canadian and SMU Faculty of Arts Dean’s List status her first two seasons.
In the community, Hann has been just as impressive.
Whether it was volunteering as manager/coach/guardian with the Mi’kmaw Nova Scotia U19 women’s volleyball team for the 2023 North American Indigenous Games, or participating in the MotionballU Marathon of Sport event hosted at SMU to raise funds and awareness for Special Olympics, Hann has been more than willing to take on whatever task was needed.
She has also helped organize a team blood drive with Canadian Blood Services and a date for the Huskies women’s volleyball team to participate in the Home for Dinner program at the Ronald McDonald House – where the team will purchase groceries and cook a meal for the families staying or visiting the House. She also volunteers with Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) Atlantic – committing to one four-hour shift per week where she ensures a welcoming environment for guests and provides a range of support to families during their stay.
Hann also continues to be committed to supporting and advocating for the rights and ongoing issues that people within the Indigenous community face. For the second year in a row, she has organized the purchase of orange t-shirts from the local Mi’kmaw Native Friendship Centre to show support for residential school survivors. This year, she used her own traditional teachings to personally bead more than 20 Every Child Matters pins (over 100 hours of work) to raise $670 – all of which she donated to the Indian Residential School Survivors Society.
Additionally, she will once again participate in the annual Kjipuktuk March for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and Two Spirit Persons and Relatives (MMIWG2S&R).
Hann is a member of both the Saint Mary’s University Indigenous Students Society (SMUISS) and the Racialized Student Academic Network (RSAN).
She also is an attendee to the 7th Step Society street group meetings, where various community members ranging from past and current offenders to workers within the criminal justice system, community volunteers and more come together weekly to reflect and discuss various life topics in order to improve themselves.
“Madison has overcome many obstacles that have come her way and has demonstrated time and time again what it means to be a student-athlete; balancing schoolwork, her sport, and giving back to the community when she can,” said Huskies head coach, Darren Russell. “She has chosen to commit any of her spare time to advocating for and helping those who need it most. Her passion for helping others will continue to drive her pursuit of engaging with and giving back to the community. Her generosity and hard work has earned the respect of many and continues to inspire the people around her.”
COACH OF THE YEAR: Michelle Wood, Acadia Axewomen
In her 12th season leading the Acadia Axewomen women’s volleyball program, Michelle Wood has been chosen by her peers as the AUS Coach of the Year. This is her second consecutive nod and fourth time overall earning this award, also winning in the 2017-18 and 2019-20 seasons.
The Axewomen finished first in the AUS standings with a 15-5 record, entering the AUS post-season as the No. 1 seed – a first for Wood in her 12 seasons at the helm.
As a team, Acadia led the conference in kills per set (11.86), kills (925), total blocks (163) and points (1,217).
The fourth award allows Wood to pass Dalhousie’s Rick Scott and Saint Mary’s Darren Russell into second place for all-time AUS Women’s Volleyball Coach of the Year wins. She now sits just one back of Moncton’s Monette Boudreau-Carroll, who won the award a league-best fives times (1995-96, 1998-99, 2001-02, 2007-08, 2008-09)
With this win, Wood becomes the AUS nominee for U SPORTS coach of the year. Only two coaches have won the national award in past years, Dalhousie's Rick Scott in 2016-17 and Moncton's Monette Boudreau-Carroll in 2007-08.
2023-24 AUS FIRST AND SECOND TEAM ALL-STARS AND ALL-ROOKIE TEAM
First Team All-Stars:
Olivia Bell, Saint Mary's, (5th year – LaHave Islands, N.S.)
Charlie Dean, Acadia, (4th year – Mississauga, Ont.)
Alexia Lemay-Evans, Acadia, (2nd year – Azilda, Ont.)
Emilia Mikanovich, Saint Mary's (2nd year – Minsk, Belarus)
Lucy Glen-Carter, Dalhousie, (5th year – Toronto, Ont.)
Talia Vydykhan, Dalhousie, (3rd year – Hammonds Plains, N.S.)
Jenna Adams, UNB, (2nd year – Truro, N.S.)
Second Team All-Stars:
Heather Benko, UNB, (2nd year – Sechelt, B.C.)
Megan Bruhm, Saint Mary’s, (4th year – Hubley, N.S.)
Becky Dorsey, Acadia, (4th year – Toronto, Ont.)
Erica Fisher, Acadia, (3rd year – Middle Stewiacke, N.S.)
Paris Stewart, Dalhousie, (2nd year – Halifax, N.S.)
Lydia Green, UNB, (3rd year – Bedford, N.S.)
Cassidy Martin, Moncton, (3rd year - Dieppe, N.B.)
All-Rookie Team:
Talia Nixon, UNB, (Fredericton, N.B.)
Hannah Ropret, Dalhousie, (Toronto, Ont.)
Allison Van Zeumeren, Acadia, (Brampton, Ont.)
Taylar Johnston, Memorial, (Nokomis, Sask.)