CHICAGO (November 25, 2021) – Three Loyola University Chicago women's volleyball student-athletes earned All-Missouri Valley Conference recognition and Amanda Berkley was tabbed MVC Coach of the Year as all-league awards were announced today prior to the start of the MVC Championship in Normal, Ill.
 
Juniors Addie Barnes (Neenah, Wis./Neenah) and Taylor Venuto (Whitmore Lake, Mich./Dexter) were named to the All-MVC First Team for the second time in their careers and first since doing so as freshmen in 2019. 
 
Despite missing the 2020-21 campaign due to injury, Barnes has found a way to have an even better year in 2021 than she did as a rookie in 2019, when she was tabbed MVC Freshman of the Year in addition to First Team All-MVC. The 5-foot-11 outside hitter enters this weekend's MVC Championship ranked fourth in the league in service aces (0.35 per set), fifth in points (3.97 per set) and seventh in kills (3.32 per set). The six-rotation standout is hitting at a .237 efficiency rate (332-144-793) and is also contributing 2.54 digs and 0.47 blocks per set.
 
Barnes has blasted double-digit kills in 18 matches this season and had a career-best 25 kills, the most by a Rambler since 2014, in a victory at Southern Illinois on September 25. She has walloped double-digit kills in 11 of her last 12 appearances, recording six double-doubles during that stretch. 
 
A 6-foot-1 middle hitter, Venuto has enjoyed another impressive season and currently leads The Valley in hitting percentage (.347), while ranking second in blocks per set (1.22). She is producing 2.50 kills and 0.17 aces per set this fall and has 11 matches of 10 or more kills. Her 133 total blocks rank third in Loyola single-season annals and her 327 career blocks place her ninth in program history.
 
A three-time MVC Defensive Player of the Week selection this season, Venuto has totaled double-figure blocks on a pair of occasions this fall, including a 12-rejection effort in a three-set sweep of UIC on September 18. Last month, she crushed a career-best 21 kills, hitting a whopping .636 (21-0-33), and added 10 stuffs in a victory at Evansville (Oct. 30). Earlier this fall, she swatted 17 kills and had no errors (17-0-26) in a win against SIU Edwardsville (Sept. 3).
 
Emily Banitt (River Falls, Wis./River Falls), who was a MVC All-Freshman Team pick in 2020-21, took home Second Team All-MVC recognition this season after averaging 2.31 kills and 0.60 blocks per set and hitting .223 (249-103-656). The sophomore, who moved to right side this season, went for double-digit kills on 10 occasions this fall, slamming a season-high 15 kills in wins versus Indiana State (Oct. 2) and at Bradley (Oct. 16).
 
Banitt finished the regular season with a flourish, hitting .288 (32-11-73) with 2.67 kills per set over her final three outings.
 
Fourth-year head coach Amanda Berkley, who has executed a remarkable turnaround of the program, was tabbed MVC Coach of the Year, earning the honor for the first time in her career. The Wisconsin native has guided the Ramblers to four consecutive winning seasons and piloted this year's club to its first MVC regular season title and its first conference crown, regardless of league affiliation, since 2002. Along the way, Loyola equaled a program record by winning 14 league matches and the Ramblers won 20 matches overall for the second time in three years.
 
Loyola (21-9, 14-4 MVC), is the top seed at the 2021 MVC Championship, which begins today in Normal, Ill. The Ramblers, who are in search of their first NCAA Tournament berth since 2005, open the tournament tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. CT with a semifinal-round matchup against the winner of the No. 4 Valparaiso versus No. 5 Evansville contest.
 
The complete list of MVC award winners can be found below.
 
All-MVC First Team
Addie Barnes, Loyola
Haley Bush, Drake
Karagan Coggin, Bradley
Melanie Feliciano, Evansville
Amelia Flynn, Missouri State
Haley Hart, Valparaiso
Kora Kauling, Bradley
Sarah Kushner, Illinois State
Tamara Otene, Illinois State
Hannah Thompson, Bradley
Alondra Vazquez, Evansville
Taylor Venuto, Loyola
Kaity Weimerskirch, Illinois State
 
All-MVC Second Team
Emily Banitt, Loyola
Giulia Cardona, Evansville
Rylee Cookerly, Valparaiso
Peyton McCarthy, Valparaiso
Carly Spies, Northern Iowa
Madeline Williams, Indiana State
 
MVC All-Freshman Team
Maddy Bushnell, Missouri State
Giulia Cardona, Evansville
Kira Fallert, Northern Iowa
Taya Hafner, Evansville
Aliyah Moore, Illinois State
Elise Swistek, Valparaiso
 
Player of the Year
Tamara Otene, Illinois State
 
Libero of the Year
Kaity Weimerskirch, Illinois State
 
Setter of the Year
Kora Kauling, Bradley
 
Freshman of the Year
Giulia Cardona, Evansville
 
Coach of the Year
Amanda Berkley, Loyola