During the afternoon prior to the beginning on Central Region volleyball tourney action, four members of the Wayne State College volleyball team were highlighted with AVCA national awards.
According to a release from Wayne State Athletics, junior outside hitter Channatee Robles, sophomore middle hitter Chloe Hanel and freshman outside hitter Delaney Miller each received First Team honors while sophomore setter Molly Romano was named All-Central Region honorable mention. Miller was also voted by region coaches as the AVCA Central Region Freshman of the Year.
Also, Hanel and Miller both received Third Team All-American honors while Robles and Romano each collected Honorable Mention accolades.
It's the fourth straight year that WSC volleyball has had at least one All-American and the second time in three years that the Wildcats had four All-Americans, matching the 2023 team that saw Taya Beller and Maggie Brahmer earn First Team honors, Kelsie Cada Second Team and Rachel Walker Honorable Mention.
Hanel, a 6-0 sophomore middle hitter from Clarkson (Clarkson-Leigh HS), was voted AVCA All-Central Region and All-NSIC First Team this season after averaging 2.87 kills and 1.00 blocks per set. She tied for the NSIC lead in solo blocks (33), was fifth in hitting percentage (.361), seventh in blocks and 15th in points per set (3.61). Hanel tied a single match school record with 13 blocks to go with 18 kills in a 3-2 win over #10 St. Cloud State October 11th. She was named NSIC Offensive Player of the Week (9/29/25) and NSIC Defensive Player of the Week (10/13/25) and was voted to the Colorado Premier and Thrasher Classic All-Tournament Teams to start the season. Hanel had at least one block in all 32 matches this season and had a career-high 24 kills vs. #16 Minnesota Duluth September 26th.
Miller, a 5-10 freshman outside hitter from Ankeny, Iowa (Centennial HS) was named AVCA All-Central Region and All-NSIC First Team along with AVCA Central Region and NSIC Freshman of the Year thanks to an outstanding season with the Wildcats. She led WSC and ranked third in the NSIC in kills per set at 3.83 and was seventh in points per set (3.95). Miller had 20 or more kills in six of her last 13 matches, highlighted by a career-best 25 kills hitting .436 in a 3-1 win over Northern State November 18th and 24 kills vs. #11 St. Cloud State in the NSIC Tournament semi-finals November 21st. Miller was named NSIC Offensive Player of the Week November 17th and had 21 matches this season with 10 or more kills.
Robles, a 5-11 junior outside hitter from Norfolk Catholic HS, received AVCA All-Central Region honors and was a repeat All-NSIC First Team selection for the Wildcats this season after posting 14 double-doubles and averaging 3.43 kills and 3.11 digs per set. She ranked third in the NSIC in service aces per set (0.43), fifth in points per set (4.04) and seventh in kills per set. Robles was voted AVCA National Player of the Week October 21st and NSIC Offensive Player of the Week October 20th and had a rare, 20/20 double-double with 22 kills and a career-high 21 digs vs. Northern State in the first round of the NSIC Tournament November 18th.
Romano, a 5-9 sophomore setter from Council Bluffs, Iowa (Abraham Lincoln HS), was AVCA All-Central Region Honorable Mention and All-NSIC First Team this season for the Wildcats after ranking fifth in the NSIC with 11.18 assists per set. She also averaged 2.50 digs per set and was second on the team with 11 double-doubles this season. Romano was a three-time NSIC Setter of the Week selection this year and had a career-best 63 set assists in a 3-1 win over Northern State in the NSIC Tournament First Round on November 18th. She also helped WSC post the third-best hitting percentage in the NSIC this season at .275.
The third-seeded WSC volleyball team (#4 DII) ended the season at 27-5 following a 3-0 loss against sixth-seeded (#7 DII) Washburn on Dec. 4.
