The Aquinas College women's volleyball team finished its season with a 12-23 record and finished seventh in the WHAC with an 8-12 conference record. The Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference released its conference honors for the 2022 women's volleyball tournament today (Nov. 10). Graduate student Brooke Nicholson, junior Abbi Perkins, and freshman Jenna Lee were named three of the best players in the conference after their performances this season.

Nicholson and Perkins were both named to the All-WHAC First Team players while Lee was named to the 2022 All-Freshman team.

This is the second time that Nicholson has been awarded as an All-WHAC First Team player. She was named to the first team back in 2020 when she was playing for the Cornerstone Golden Eagles.

Nicholson put in a lot of work for the Saints this season, both offensively and defensively. She finished the season second in the WHAC and 11th in the NAIA with 1.24 blocks per set. More impressively, she finished second in the WHAC and second in the NAIA with 151 total blocks, including 18 solo blocks and 133 block assists.

Offensively, Nicholson finished second on the team in total kills with 309 on the season. She did that on a team-leading .252 hitting percentage (minimum of 50 attacks). She would also set a career-high in kills during consecutive matches against Concordia and Lawrence Tech on October 1st and 5th, respectively. Her prior career-high from her playing days at Cornerstone was 15 kills. She would meet or exceed that number on four separate occasions this year.

Perkins made the move from the All-WHAC second team in 2021 to the All-WHAC first team in 2022 after moving to outside hitter. Perkins led the team in both kills (346) and kills per set (2.84) this season. Her kill total was ranked fifth in the WHAC and 67th overall amongst all NAIA players. She had 979 total attacks this season and a .186 hitting percentage. Individually, Perkins set a career-high in kills on senior night (Nov. 2) against Rochester with 19 kills. Her career-high from last season was 17 kills, a mark that she would meet or exceed during six separate matches this year.

Defensively, Perkins averaged just over a dig per set with 128 digs on the season. She would also post five solo blocks and 69 block assists on the 2022 campaign.

Lee had a solid season for the Saints and was one of the most impactful freshman in the conference. She had the fourth-most kills on the team with 166 on the season and averaged 1.68 kills per set with a .128 hitting percentage. She posted double-digit kill performances on four separate occasions this season. This included a career-high kills match at the beginning of the season against St. Francis when she had 12.

Defensively, she posted 84 digs, eight solo blocks, and 29 block assists for 37 total blocks on the year.

In addition to the All-Conference awards, the Saints had four student-athletes named as WHAC All-Academic recipients. The All-Academic award is given to student-athletes who are a junior or above in academic standing with a cumulative grade point average of 3.25 or higher and have been at Aquinas College for at least one year. Aquinas' All-Academic honorees are Perkins, Emily Jones, Peyton Goschka, and Samee Teachworth.

Jones was also named AQ's representative for the WHAC Champions of Character team. This award is given to a Saint who best represents the five core character values of integrity, respect, responsibility, sportsmanship, and servant leadership.