HADDONFIELD, N.J. - The Atlantic East Conference announced the Women’s Volleyball weekly award winners on Monday as Centenary’s Poppy Skjonnemand and Marywood’s Ayla Bransford earned Player and Specialty Player of the Week honors, respectively.
Player of the Week: Poppy Skjonnemand
School: Centenary
Class: Junior
Position: Outside Hitter
Hometown: Southampton, U.K.
High School: West Morris Mendham
Brief Outlook of Week: The junior had a dominating week for the Cyclones, leading them to a 3-0 week. She started Friday on the road at conference opponent Gwynedd Mercy, dominating at the net with 21 kills in the five-set thriller to secure the win for her team. She also led the team in digs with 16. The Southampton, U.K., native followed that performance with a combined 34 kills in her final two games at a tri-match, tallying and an additional 30 digs on the day. She totaled 60 points with a 5.00 points per set average, 55 kills with a 4.58 kills per set average, 46 digs with a 3.83 digs per set average, and added 4 service aces.
Specialty Player of the Week: Ayla Bransford
School: Marywood
Class: Freshman
Position: Setter
Hometown: Colorado Springs, Colo.
High School: Pine Creek
Brief Outlook of Week: Bransford tallied 108 assists, averaging 8.31 per set, in three matches. The freshman also had a team-high eight aces, along with 31 digs. In a five-set thrilling win against Cairn, she recorded 48 assists with five aces and 12 digs. Bransford assisted 24 points in a loss at Marymount with 10 digs before closing out the week with 36 digs in a three-set loss to DeSales. She recorded a total of 31 digs, three total blocks and three block assists.
Weekly Honor Roll:
Rey Bennett, Centenary: In a 3-0 week for the Cyclones Bennett totaled 54 digs on the week, with 17 service aces. She had 25 digs against Delaware Valley in the opening match of their tri-match meet. Across the three matches, she recorded 54 digs, averaging 4.50 digs per set, and nine service aces.
Julia Solomon, Neumann: Solomon tallied 39 kills and eight service aces in a 2-1 week for Neumann. In a 3-2 win against York (Pa.), the sophomore tallied 20 kills and seven service aces. The sophomore’s 47.5 points yielded a 4.32 points per set average alongside a 3.55 kills per set average.
Kyla Carney, Neumann: Carney handed out 90 assists and 24 digs in a 2-1 week for the Knights. Starting off with a 3-0 win at Albright, the sophomore dished out 28 assists and notched nine digs. Carney tallied 42 assists in a 3-2 win over York (Pa.) and finished the weekend with 20 assists in a 3-0 loss to Lebanon Valley. She posted an outstanding 8.18 assists per set, while also averaging 2.18 digs per set with three service aces and a hitting average of .214.
Colleen Russell, Pratt: Russell anchored the Pratt front line in a strong two-match week, totaling 24 kills and eight blocks while hitting .313 over nine sets. The junior powered the Cannoneers to a five-set win over Bard with 14 kills on .440 hitting percentage and six total blocks, three of which were solo. She followed with a team-best 10 kills and two blocks against Immaculata. Over the 1-1 stretch, Russell averaged 3.94 points per set, 2.67 kills and 0.89 blocks per set.
2025 AEC Women’s Volleyball Weekly Award Winners:
AEC Player of the Week:
Sept. 2: Taylor Hallam, Marywood
Sept. 8: Genevieve Pollock, Marywood
Sept. 15: Poppy Skjonnemand, Centenary
Sept. 22: Sabrina Schoeberlein, Marymount
Sept. 29: Dadlyna Louis, Saint Elizabeth
Oct. 6: Taylor Hallam, Marywood
Oct. 13: Carolina Samaniego, Marywood
Oct. 20: Poppy Skjonnemand, Centenary
AEC Specialist Player of the Week:
Sept. 2: Ava Humphries, Marymount
Sept. 8: Catie Woolf, Marywood
Sept. 15: Rey Bennett, Centenary
Sept. 22: Andrea Fraga, Marywood
Sept. 29: Jessica Rothermel, Marymount
Oct. 6: Ayla Bransford, Marywood
Oct. 13: Ava Humphries, Marymount
Oct. 20: Ayla Bransford, Marywood