Conference USA honored four Western Kentucky volleyball players for their contributions on the court this season.

Senior Rachel Anderson earned her third first-team all-conference nod while junior Sophia Cerino was tabbed a second-team all-conference selection.

Payton Frederick and Lauren Matthews each earned a spot on the league’s all-freshman team.

Anderson notched 387 kills through the regular season while operating at a .354 efficiency. The Sturgis, Mich., native has been effective on the defensive side as well, owning 108 total blocks on the season – including 37 solo blocks.

Naturally a right-side hitter, Cerino saw an extended amount of time on the left as the Lady Toppers tried to find a lineup that best suited their abilities and availability. Cerino worked at a .329 offensive clip with a rate of .300 or better in 13 of 19 matches on the right.

Playing in all 112 sets just like Anderson and Cerino, Frederick anchored the team’s back line. Midway through the season, the second-generation Lady Topper assumed libero responsibilities and never looked back, leading WKU in digs in 15 of 17 matches since the move.

Despite her freshman campaign getting off to a slow start after an injury, Matthews made up for lost time and earned a spot on the league’s all-freshman squad. Across her 19 matches of action, the Indianapolis native owns 178 kills while operating at a .275 rate.

Frederick and Matthews are the first Lady Topper rookies to earn all-freshman team recognition since Anderson in 2015. The only other WKU players to land on the team are Alyssa Cavanaugh and Jessica Lucas.

Hudson inks 3 future Lady toppers to national letters of intent

Western Kentucky volleyball coach Travis Hudson on Wednesday announced the signing of three standout prep players who inked their national letters of intent to play for the Lady Toppers next fall.

Paige Briggs, Avri Davis and Jennifer Rush all signed with WKU.

“This group just fits our needs so incredibly well,” Hudson said in a news release. “We desperately need more help on the outside and these are three kids that can all play the outside hitter position if we need them to, and it’s a really great combination of athleticism and skill and I think the three of them collectively will bring a lot to the table in 2019.”

Briggs is an outside hitter from Ortonville, Mich., who divided her prep career between home school studies, during which she played for Oxford High School and Lake Orion High School.

She reached the 1,000-kill milestone during her two seasons at Lake Orion and led her team in the category three-consecutive years.

A three-time all-region selection, Briggs was also named second-team all-state her last two campaigns. She was named Under Armor All-American honorable mention in 2018 and made an appearance on the Junior Volleyball Association watch list in 2016-17.

Davis is set to join WKU from Spring Hill, Tenn., after earning seven letters across volleyball and basketball from Summit High School. She recorded a successful prep career that saw her amass more than 1,000 kills in addition to becoming the all-time blocks leader at her high school.

Davis was named a PrepVolleyball Senior Ace, listing her as one of the top 100 recruits in the 2019 class. Additionally, she was a 2017 Tennessean finalist and the Volleyball Player of the Year.

Rush hails from Granville, Ohio, where she collected four varsity letters and served as Granville High School team captain for two years. The outside hitter helped her team make it to the regional finals in 2017 and was awarded Most Improved Player on her varsity squad three years straight.

Rush has received first-team all-conference recognition and earned second-team all-district status from 2017-18. During her final season with the Blue Aces, Rush was tabbed all-state honorable mention.