By ISU Sports Information
NORMAL – Stef Jankiewicz was named the Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year, while Jaelyn Keene and Courtney Pence took home All-MVC First-Team honors, the league announced in its annual postseason awards presentation Thursday at Redbird Arena.
Jankiewicz is Illinois State’s seventh MVC Freshman/Newcomer of the Year, and first since Ali Line in 2015. She was additionally named a member of the six-player MVC All-Freshman Team and the All-MVC Second Team.
Keene becomes only the second player in Illinois State history to be named a four-time All-MVC First-Team selection, joining former Redbird Ashley Rosch (2012-15). Keene and Missouri State’s Lily Johnson become the sixth and seventh players in league history to become four-time All-MVC First-Team picks.
Pence earned All-MVC accolades for the third-straight year, including a second-straight year of first-team honors.
The awards presentation took place just hours before the start of the MVC Tournament. No. 3 seed Illinois State (21-11) defeated No. 6 Valparaiso in a quarterfinal match on Thursday. The Redbirds will play Northern Iowa at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
Jankiewicz earned the league’s freshman of the year award after a standout first collegiate season. The setter from Farmington Hills, Michigan, led her team and ranked second in the Valley in both total assists (1,266) and assists per set (10.91). She ranked second on her team in aces (27) and aces per set (0.23), and third in digs (310) and digs per set (2.67).
Jankiewicz was a five-time MVC Freshman of the Week selection, and is one of only four players in league history to win the award five or more times. The freshman setter dished out 50 or more assists on nine occasions, twice topping 60 assists. She posted 16 doubles-doubles in her first collegiate season.
Keene, a senior middle blocker from Jacksonville, Illinois, turned in her most productive offensive season yet, as she posted career-high totals in kills (458) and attacks (1,047), while ranking among the MVC leaders in hitting percentage (.330), kills per set (3.95), blocks per set (0.97) and aces per set (0.32).
Keene will finish her Illinois State career ranking among the top 10 players in points (1,922.5), kills (1,522), blocks (454) and aces (134), and is on pace to set Illinois State’s career hitting percentage record.
Pence, a junior libero from Springfield, Illinois, ranked among the top defensive players in the country this season, leading the MVC and ranking second among all players nationally in digs (722) and digs per set (6.22). She was named the MVC Defensive Player of the Week five times during the 2017 season, bringing her career total to 10, to set an MVC record.
Pence tallied six of the top 10 single-match dig totals in the Valley this fall. She has now posted eight of Illinois State’s top 10 single-match dig totals, including five new entries this season. She is only 77 digs away from breaking Kasey Mollerus’ Illinois State career digs record (2,060), and needs just 11 more this season to break Emily Orrick’s single-season mark (732).
