KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association has announced its first athletes of the week in the 2026 volleyball season. Washburn’s Emma Siron and Shannon Frakes were honored as the first Offensive Athlete of the Week and Setter of the Week, while Nebraska Kearney’s Ellie Spang was named the first Defensive Athlete of the Week this season.

 OFFENSIVE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK:  Emma Siron, Washburn
Emma Siron was named the tournament MVP at the Washburn Invitational after helping the No. 8-ranked Ichabods to a perfect opening weekend with wins against four non-conference opponents. The junior from Sedalia, Mo., led all MIAA hitters with 58 total kills (4.14 per set) while hitting 30.7 percent overall. She also served seven aces, scooped 37 digs (2.64 per set) and made three blocks. Siron’s opening weekend was highlighted by her 20-kill performance in Washburn’s season-opening win over Oklahoma Christian, where she crushed 20 kills and added four service aces and eight digs in four sets.

 DEFENSIVE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK:  Ellie Spang, Nebraska Kearney   
Ellie Spang helped the No. 7-ranked Lopers to a 3-1 opening weekend at Dallas Baptist University’s Dallas Classic. The senior libero led the MIAA with 6.08 digs per set, collecting 73 total across 12 sets. She also added five assists and served up five service aces over the weekend.

 SETTER OF THE WEEK:  Shannon Frakes, Washburn
Shannon Frakes controlled the No. 8 Ichabods’ offense to a 4-0 week at the Washburn Invitational, earning All-Tournament team honors on the way. The junior setter dished out an MIAA-leading 162 assists (11.57 per set) while also leading the team in digs with 52 total (3.71 per set). The Overland Park, Kan. native did a bit of everything, adding 15 kills (1.07 per set), seven blocks and four service aces. Frakes tallied three double-doubles on the week, including a 47-assist and 19-dig performance in the 3-1 season-opening win over Oklahoma Christian.
 
OTHER NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
Tanith Roush, Missouri Western    
Tanith Roush helped lead MoWest to a perfect 4-0 opening weekend at the Bahama House Classic in Daytona Beach, Fla., totaling 54 kills on 106 attacks with just 10 errors for an MIAA-leading .415 hitting percentage. Overall, Roush averaged 3.86 kills and 4.29 points per set while adding 12 blocks across 14 sets. The redshirt sophomore opened the weekend with five kills and two blocks in the Griffons’ 3-0 sweep of St. Edward’s before recording 15 kills on a .353 hitting percentage with six blocks in the four-set win over Embry-Riddle. Roush followed with nine kills in the 3-0 sweep against Florida Southern before closing the weekend with a career-high 25 kills on 38 attacks with just two errors, hitting .605 in the four-set victory over Florida Tech. She also added three blocks and finished with 26.5 points in the finale.
 
Addysen Alvis, Missouri Southern   
Addysen Alvis turned in an outstanding opening weekend for Missouri Southern, leading the Lions offensively with 64 kills over 16 sets while averaging 4.00 kills per set and 4.25 points per set. She finished the weekend with a .258 hitting percentage along with three aces, four assists and two blocks. Alvis saved her best performance for a five-set battle against Missouri S&T, recording a team-best and career-high 29 kills and 31.0 points while adding 14 digs and two block assists. Her 29 kills were the highest individual total by a Lion during the weekend. She also recorded 15 kills while hitting .344 against Northwestern Oklahoma and posted 13 kills against Southeastern Oklahoma. Alvis opened the season with a trio of double-double performances, also adding 50 digs (3.13 digs/set) and posting 10 or more digs in each of the four matches. 
 
Crystal Smith, Pittsburg State  
Crystal Smith helped lead the Gorillas to a 4-0 start to the 2026 season down in Florida at the Eckerd Classic. In 15 sets, the Jasper, Mo., native averaged 1.33 total blocks (20 total) and posted 2.33 kills per set (35 total) with an impressive .431 hitting percentage and was responsible for 54.0 points (3.60 per set). In the Gorillas’ four-set victory against Puerto Rico - Mayaguez (Aug. 28), Smith recorded seven total blocks (three solo) and five kills in 11 attempts (.455 hitting percentage). She ended the tournament with five blocks and 15 kills (.429 hitting percentage) in Pitt State’s 3-1 win over the tournament host, Eckerd College (Aug. 29). In all four matches, Smith recorded at least four total blocks, five kills and hit above .350.
 
Haylee Wolf, Fort Hays State   
Haylee Wolf anchored the Fort Hays State back row as the Tigers opened the 2026 season with four straight wins under first-year head coach Garcia Ramser. Wolf totaled 78 digs across four victories at the 2026 Tiger Classic, averaging 5.57 digs per set. The junior libero currently ranks second in the MIAA in both total digs and digs per set. She recorded 12 or more digs in all four matches, including 26 in a three-set win over Midwestern State, which is currently the most in the MIAA for a sweep.
 
Mya Karrick, Northwest Missouri     
Mya Karrick averaged 10.07 assists per set and grabbed a pair of double-doubles as Northwest Missouri went 3-1 at the McKendree Invitational to open the 2026 season. The senior setter also now leads the MIAA with 10 service aces (0.67 aces/set). In the Bearcats’ 3-0 season-opening sweep of Maryville, Karrick produced a double-double with 32 assists and 14 digs. She notched another double-double with 51 assists and 15 digs in a five-set triumph over Ouachita Baptist. She also landed five service aces in the win. Karrick then had 31 assists, nine digs and three kills in a three-set victory over McKendree before adding 37 assists, seven digs, two aces and a kill in a four-set loss to Harding.

ALSO NOMINATED:
OFFENSE – Maddie LaPoint [Pittsburg State], Addysen Alvis [Missouri Southern], Bria Dawson [Central Missouri], Carly Purdy [Nebraska Kearney], Gabrielle Gartner [Northwest Missouri], Mylie Brown [Fort Hays State], Lavra Krizanic [Emporia State], Caroline Clayton [Central Oklahoma], Tiyana Bhatte [Northeastern State]
DEFENSE –  Ragin Corwin [Central Missouri], Brooklyn Morrissey [Washburn], Luhring Ellery [Northwest Missouri], Kate Wells [Central Oklahoma], Brooklyn Weaver [Emporia State], Anna Weberg [Missouri Western], Reagan Ashby [Missouri Southern]
SETTER – Chloe Rauner [Central Missouri], Annie Eaton [Fort Hays State], Riley Roberts [Central Oklahoma], Brenna Weaver [Missouri Southern]
 

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WEEK ONE (August 31):
Offensive – Emma Siron, Washburn
Defensive – Ellie Spang, Nebraska Kearney
Setter – Shannon Frakes, Washburn