Four St. Edmond volleyball players were honored to be selected as North Central Conference honorees, the league announced recently.

Seniors Sasha Hess and Mariah Myers were on the first team while classmate Claire O’Connor was on the second. Junior Ava Underberg earned third-team honors.

The Gaels finished 19-12 overall and 4-3 in conference, placing them third behind champion Humboldt and Webster City. St. Edmond advanced to a Class 1A regional semifinal before falling to state qualifier BCLUW.

“As a coach you always want to honor all of your girls because they all deserve to be recognized for their efforts and hard work,” said SEHS head coach Heather Seeden. “With eight teams in the conference, it’s a tough roster to get into; and the fact that we had four this year is a nice nod to the work our team has done.

“All four girls are deserving, as are the other girls on the list.”

Hess was the conference leader with 157 digs in 26 sets, finishing 17 ahead of the runner-up. She also had 24 aces and served with a success rate of 94 percent.

Myers, who signed to play softball at the University of Iowa, ranked fifth in kills in championship games alone with 89. She also had 107 digs, which placed her seventh .

Humboldt and Webster City both placed two on the first team, with Clarion-Goldfield/Dows having one. Mia Schluter, a junior for the Wildcats, was the only unanimous selection, with teammate Larsen Bonnstetter joining her.

Olivia Gallentine and Marissa Hedeen led the way for the Lynx while CG/D’s Indy Johnson was also honored.

O’Connor ranked first in the NCC in assists with 206 in seven matches, adding 17 kills. She had 57 digs and nine aces while finishing 31 assists ahead of second place on the list.

Underberg finished seventh with 76 kills in seven matches while adding seven blocks.

Hess also earned all-state academic recognition for his efforts in the classroom.

“It’s a very prestigious and difficult award and honor to achieve, so I’m proud of Sasha,” » Seeden said. “I anticipate that several of the girls on our team will be assigned an academic conference when this is distributed, as most of them excel in the classroom as well.”

The 19 victories are the team’s most victories in the Bound era, dating back to 2007. It was only the ninth time they won at least 10 games during that span.

ALL-NORTH CENTRAL CONFERENCE VOLLEYBALL

First team

*Mia Schluter, Humboldt, jr. ; Larsen Bonnstetter, Humboldt, sr. ; Olivia Gallentine, Webster City, Sr. ; Marissa Hedeen, Webster City, Sr. ; Sasha Hess, St. Edmond, Sr.; Indy Johnson, Clarion-Goldfield/Dows, sr. ; Mariah Myers, St. Edmond, Sr.; Aubryee Showalter, Hampton-Dumont/CAL, sr.

*Denotes unanimous selection

Second team

Abby Drier, Hampton-Dumont/CAL, sr. ; Elliot Ennis, Clarion-Goldfield/Dows, sr. ; Lauren McLaughlin, Algona, Sr. ; Claire O’Connor, St. Edmond, Sr.; Rowan O’Keefe, Clear Lake, Sr. ; Cloe Savitski, Webster City, Sr.; Carlea Dagel, Iowa Falls-Alden, Sophie; Addie Waldorf, Humboldt, Sr.

Third team

Aubree Gronewold, Hampton-Dumont/CAL, sr. ; Madi Ott, Clear Lake, Sr. ; Lainey Venteicher, Algona, Sr.; Claire Dieleman, Humboldt, jr. ; Morgan Hackbarth, Webster City, Jr. ; Macy Knapp, Algona, Jr. ; Ava Underberg, St. Edmond, jr.; Kendall Works, Humboldt, Jr. ; Jazzie Dodd, Humboldt, fr.