NORFOLK, Va., Nov. 15, 2022 – Howard University freshman outside hitter Rya McKinnon was selected as both the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Volleyball Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year, presented by TowneBank, the conference announced.
 
Coppin State's Ashley Roman was once again named the league's Defensive Player of the Year, while Setter of the Year went to both Howard University's Kayla Diaz and Coppin State's Andrea Tsvetanova. Tim Walsh of Coppin State was named Coach of the Year.
 
All awards were voted on by the conference's head coaches and sports information directors.
 
McKinnon is the first MEAC volleyball player to be named Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year in the same season since MEAC Hall of Famer Jana Milin of Maryland Eastern Shore in 2002. McKinnon leads the conference in points (3.71 per set) and kills (3.21 per set), while her .326 hitting percentage is fourth-best in the league. She also ranked eighth in the MEAC in service aces, with 0.38 per set. In MEAC play, McKinnon averaged a league-best 4.64 points and 4.05 kills per set. She is the only MEAC player with multiple 20-kill efforts this season, and her six double-doubles are tied for fourth in the conference.
 
Diaz led the MEAC in assists per set (10.57), ranking her 31^st nationally, and in conference play, that average bumped up to 10.95 per set. She quarterbacked a Howard offense that led the MEAC in points (17.27 per set), kills (13.31 per set), hitting percentage (.294) and assists (12.12 per set) in conference play. She led the conference with 21 30-assist performances – including three 50-plus assist efforts – and had four double-doubles on the season.
 
Tsvetanova ranks second in the MEAC with 9.11 assists per set and leads both the MEAC and the nation in total service aces (90) and aces per set (0.78). Her 1,048 total assists are also the 30^th-highest total among all Div. I student-athletes, and she has recorded a MEAC-high 10 double-doubles on the season. She also has 19 30-assist performances on the season, which ranks second in the conference.
 
Roman ranks 17^th nationally in total digs with 548, and her 4.77 digs per set average leads the conference and ranks 36^th nationally. She has racked up 1,901 career digs at Coppin State, which currently ranks her second on the MEAC's all-time career list, and Roman has recorded 20 or more digs in a conference-best 10 matches this season. In the three years in which the MEAC has given out a Defensive Player of the Year award, Roman has won it each season.
 
Walsh led Coppin State to the first 20-win season in program history and a share of the MEAC regular-season title with Howard after the Eagles went 12-2 in league play. Coppin State enters the MEAC Volleyball Championship as the top seed with a 21-9 overall record, and the Eagles boast non-conference wins over the likes of North Carolina A&T State, Bethune-Cookman, George Washington, Eastern Michigan, Liberty and Radford. This is Walsh's second Coach of the Year honor in the last three seasons.
 
Joining McKinnon, Roman, Diaz and Tsvetanova on the All-MEAC First Team are Coppin State's Miajavon Coleman and Ammaarah Williams and Delaware State's Alondra Maldonado.
 
The 2022 MEAC Volleyball Championship will take place in Delaware State University's Memorial Hall this Friday through Sunday, Nov. 18-20.

 
MEAC Volleyball
2022 Postseason All-MEAC Teams
As voted on by the league's head coaches and sports information directors
 
Player of the Year: Rya McKinnon, Howard
Rookie of the Year: Rya McKinnon, Howard
Co-Setters of the Year: Kayla Diaz, Howard / Andrea Tsvetanova, Coppin State
Defensive Player of the Year: Ashley Roman, Coppin State
Coach of the Year: Tim Walsh, Coppin State

FIRST TEAM

Name	Class	Ht.	Pos.	School	Hometown
Miajavon Coleman	Gr.	5-10	OH	Coppin State	San Antonio, Texas
Ashley Roman	Sr.	5-5	L	Coppin State	Isabela, Puerto Rico
Andrea Tsvetanova	Sr.	5-9	S	Coppin State	Sofia, Bulgaria
Ammaarah Williams	Gr.	6-0	MB/OH	Coppin State	Cleveland, Ohio
Alondra Maldonado	Jr.	6-1	MB	Delaware State	Patillas, Puerto Rico
Kayla Diaz	Sr.	5-7	S	Howard	Nanuet, N.Y.
Rya McKinnon	Fr.	5-11	OH	Howard	Bessemer, Ala.

SECOND TEAM

Name	Class	Ht.	Pos.	School	Hometown
Karen Cordero	Sr.	5-9	OH	Delaware State	Chula Vista, Calif.
Jasmal Cruz	Sr.	5-7	L	Delaware State	Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico
Sydney Lewis	Sr.	6-1	MB	Delaware State	Bowie, Md.
Tamar Wells	Sr.	6-0	MB	Howard	Apopka, Fla.
Charlize Williams	So.	5-11	MB	Maryland Eastern Shore	Mesquite, Texas
Carla Hernandez	Gr.	5-8	OH	Norfolk State	Hatillo, Puerto Rico
Shonte Seale	Jr.	5-10	OH	Norfolk State	Bridgetown, Barbados

ALL-ROOKIE TEAM

Name	Class	Ht.	Pos.	School	Hometown
Kennedy Beatty	Fr.	5-1	DS	Coppin State	Lexington, Ky.
Rya McKinnon	Fr.	5-11	OH	Howard	Bessemer, Ala.
Nkemjika Ikemefuna	Fr.	5-11	OH	Maryland Eastern Shore	Richmond, Texas
Sydney McCree	Fr.	5-10	S	Norfolk State	Durham, N.C.
Kamren Harper	Fr.	5-11	OH	North Carolina Central	Simpsonville, S.C.
Tori Wilson	Fr.	6-0	MB/RS	North Carolina Central	Allen, Texas