SAN DIEGO – San Diego State volleyball middle blocker Shea Rubright was named Mountain West Newcomer of the Year on Tuesday, as the league announced its 2024 postseason awards in advance of the MW Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada.
In addition to Rubright, the Aztecs landed one other player on the all-MW team, opposite hitter Taylor Underwood, while outside hitter Jasmine Davis received honorable mention.
The league's 11 head coaches voted for the 18-player all-MW team encompassing the conference schedule only, with six additional nominees earning honorable mention.
With their selections, SDSU boasts three all-conference performers for the first time since the 2019 campaign. Rubright also gives the Aztecs their second MW Newcomer of the Year recipient in program history after Michelle Waber was honored in 2012.
All three players have contributed to San Diego State success this season, with the Aztecs posting a 19-9 overall record, their best since the 2012 campaign.
A graduate transfer from Washington State, Rubright ranks second in the nation with a .452 hitting percentage for all matches as of Nov. 26, which is on pace to shatter the Aztecs’ single-season record of .410 set by Jennifer Hamilton in 1995.
Against MW opponents, Rubright hit .423, which was good for third in the conference, while her average of 1.18 blocks per set was slotted fifth. During that stretch, the Spokane, Washington, product also blasted 152 kills (2.14/set), which ranked third on the squad, while serving up a team-high 18 aces.
In addition, Rubright finished with double-digit kills in six conference matches and collected five or more blocks on seven occasions, including a career-high 11 rejections vs. UNLV on Oct. 22, when she tied her collegiate best with three solo stops.
For the season, Rubright started all 29 matches, averaging 2.23 kills and a team-best 1.15 blocks per set, the latter of which ranked sixth in the MW. Along with her stellar efficiency, she also topped the squad with 32 aces overall.
Rubright posted two of the league’s top hitting percentages this year (min. 12 kills), including a .667 clip vs. Tulane (Sept. 7) and a .640 pace vs. Portland State (Sept. 6.) during which she launched a career-high 17 kills.
Meanwhile, Underwood garnered all-MW accolades for the second year in a row after averaging a team-high 3.11 kills per set (196) during the conference schedule.
The Aztec junior recorded double-digit kill-totals in 12 of 16 league matches she appeared, tying her season high with 18 put-aways at New Mexico (Sept. 28), vs. Utah State (Oct. 3) and at Boise State (Oct. 24).
In a three-set sweep of Wyoming at home on Oct. 19, Underwood posted a career-best .542 hitting percentage, blasting a match-high 14 kills in 24 attempts with just one miscue. She also hit .519 in a four-set triumph over San José State on Nov. 9, after leading all players with another 14 put-aways in 27 errorless swings.
For the season, Underwood led the Aztecs with 3.53 points and 3.17 kills per set, both of which ranked 10th in the MW. Despite missing two matches, she finished fourth on the team with 56 total blocks, tying her career high with five rejections vs. Fresno State on Nov. 7, when she set a collegiate best with three solo stuffs.
Not to be outdone, Davis displayed tremendous versatility in her lone season with the Aztecs, averaging 2.65 kills and 2.39 digs per set in Mountain West matches, which ranked second on the team. In addition, the graduate transfer from Connecticut was slotted second on the squad with 17 service aces during that span while posting 29 blocks.
Against MW foes, Davis surpassed the double-digit kill plateau in 11 matches and posted 10 or more digs on eight occasions while recording five double-doubles.
In her first two conference starts at Air Force (Sept. 26) and New Mexico (Sept. 28), Davis led the team with 32 kills (3.56/set) and hit .397 for the weekend, featuring a season-high 20 put-aways and four block assists in that latter contest vs. the Lobos.
Two weeks later, the Redondo Beach, California, native logged her highest hitting percentage of the year with a .500 clip in a sweep at San José State, (Oct. 10), knocking down 10 kills on 18 attempts with just one error before collecting a season-high 18 digs at Boise State (Oct. 24).
For the season, Davis ranks second on the Aztecs with 2.61 kills and 2.46 digs per set while topping the squad with seven double-doubles.
Combined with her four years at UConn, Davis has amassed 1,148 kills and 1,066 digs for her career.
San Diego State is set to square off against Fresno State on Wednesday, Nov. 27, in the first round of the Mountain West Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada. First serve is set for 1 p.m. PT.
2024 MOUNTAIN WEST VOLLEYBALL AWARDS
Player of the Year: Malaya Jones, Colorado State
Freshman of the Year: Kiki Remensperger, Boise State
Newcomer of the Year: Shea Rubright, San Diego State
Coach of the Year: Emily Kohan, Colorado State
All-Mountain West
Shea Rubright, San Diego State
Taylor Underwood, San Diego State
Paige Bartsch, Boise State
Emery Herman, Colorado State
Malaya Jones, Colorado State
Karina Leber, Colorado State
Naeemah Weathers, Colorado State
Brooke Cowie, Fresno State
Dionii Fraga, Fresno State
Addison Haluska, Fresno State
Ella Rud, Fresno State
Lauryn Payne, New Mexico
Gabby McLaughlin, Nevada
Tierney Barlow, Utah State
Adna Mehmedovic, Utah State
Kelsey Watson, Utah State
Kasia Partyka, Wyoming
Paige Lauterwasser, Wyoming
Honorable Mention
Jasmine Davis, San Diego State
Annie Kaminski, Boise State
Kiki Remensperger, Boise State
Blaire Fleming, San José State
Brooke Slusser, San José State
Basia Latos, UNLV
Chloe Thomas, UNLV
Kaylie Kofe, Utah State
Sarah Holcomb, Wyoming