EVANSVILLE, Ind. – College Sports Communicators announced Tuesday afternoon that University of Southern Indiana Volleyball had four Screaming Eagles land on the Academic All-District list for the 2023 season. Senior Leah Anderson (Bloomington, Illinois), senior Abby Bednar (Chagrin Falls, Ohio), junior Carly Sobieralski (Indianapolis, Indiana), and sophomore Keira Moore (Newburgh, Indiana) each secured academic accolades this year after outstanding status in the classroom and success on the court.
To be eligible for the CSC Academic All-District Award, the student-athlete must be a starter or an important reserve with legitimate athletic credentials and at least a 3.5 cumulative grade point average (4.0 scale). They must have reached a sophomore athletic and academic standing at the institution and must have completed at least one full academic year at the institution.
Anderson, an exercise science major, earns her second CSC Academic All-District award to cap off her senior campaign. She received the second-most votes to earn first-team All-Ohio Valley Conference accolades after posting the third-most kills and second-most points in the conference. Anderson was voted as OVC Offensive Player of the Week three different times and played in a career-high 119 sets and 31 matches while starting in all. Her stat line found a career-high 526.5 points, 445 kills, 334 digs, and 59 blocks in her final season at USI. Anderson left her mark at USI by standing second in kills and aces, fourth in digs, 17th in block assists, and 20th in total blocks in the USI Volleyball record book.
Bednar, a psychology major, secures her first CSC Academic All-District honor in her four-year career as an Eagle. She was voted to second-team All-OVC after landing in the top 10 in kills per set, aces per set, and points per set within the conference. Bednar was named to the Bellarmine Invitational and OVC Volleyball Championship All-Tournament teams and left her mark by securing a career-most 373 kills, 223 digs, 76 blocks, and 43 aces in 118 sets played and 31 matches. After four seasons, Bednar finds herself in the top 20 all-time at USI in career kills with 898.
Sobieralski, a business administration major, lands her first-ever CSC Academic All-District accolade. USI’s leading setter had a breakout season by earning 1,153 assists to become the sixth setter since 2000 in program history to earn 1,000 assists in a season. She was named OVC Setter of the Week three times and nabbed USI Invitational All-Tournament Team honors. Sobieralski recorded the most assists in a four-set match in the OVC and NCAA Division I with a career-high 65 assists against Western Illinois. She secured 17 double-doubles with 13 40+ assist nights, four 50+ assist games, a pair of 60+ assist performances, and two 20+ dig matches.
Sobieralski enters the 2024 season 10th in career assists at USI with 1,779.
Moore, a psychology major, is a first-time CSC Academic All-District recipient in her first eligible season. Moore stepped up in a big way defensively for USI, earning 498 digs for the fifth-most in a season in program history. She played in all 31 matches and 119 sets as the libero and ended the season with 4.18 digs per set for eighth most in the OVC. Moore posted 27 double-digit dig nights and ended the season on an 11-match double-digit dig streak.
Each of these athletes were on the OVC Commissioner’s Roll of Honor list in August 2022 while Moore and Anderson secured OVC Medal of Honor accolades after their first season at the DI level.
The Eagles completed a successful season by making their first OVC Championship berth and earning their first tournament victory while going 15-16 overall and 10-8 in conference play.Â
