SAN DIEGO – San Diego State volleyball’s Taylor Underwood and Zara Stewart earned all-Mountain West honors on Tuesday, as the league announced its 2025 postseason awards in advance of the MW Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The league's 12 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, Underwood and Stewart give the Aztecs multiple selections for the second year in a row and fifth time in the last 10 seasons.
Underwood garnered all-MW accolades for the third consecutive year, becoming just the third SDSU player to receive all-Mountain West recognition in three straight seasons since the league’s inception in 1999, joining Deja Harris (2015-18) and Andrea Hannasch (2010-12).
A native of Norco, California, Underwood led the Aztecs with 4.06 points and 3.68 kills per set during the MW schedule, which ranked fourth and sixth in the league, respectively. In that span, the SDSU senior reached the double-digit kill plateau on 14 occasions, tying her season high with 22 kills vs. San José State (Sept. 27), UNLV (Oct.18) and New Mexico (Nov. 8), all on the road.
In that former contest against the Spartans, Underwood hit .400 and contributed three blocks and a service ace en route to earning MW Offensive Player of the Week honors.
For the season, Underwood topped the squad with 3.90 points and 3.54 kills per set, which ranks fourth and sixth, respectively. Despite missing the final four matches of the year, the Aztec opposite hitter was also slotted fifth on the team with 53 blocks, including five solo efforts.
After launching 13 kills in a five-set victory at Grand Canyon on Nov. 6, Underwood surpassed the 1,000-kill plateau in an Aztec uniform after transferring from DePaul in 2023. With 354 kills this season, she became the first SDSU player to record 300 put-aways in three straight years since Deja Harris (2016-18).
Earlier this season, Underwood posted her 1,000th career kill against LSU at the Flo Hyman Classic on Sept. 5 in Houston, Texas. As a collegian, she has blasted 1,308 kills in four seasons, including 264 during her freshman campaign at DePaul in 2022.
Meanwhile, Stewart emerged as the Aztecs’ defensive leader at the libero position after averaging 3.89 digs per set (276 overall) in Mountain West competition, which ranked third in the league. In addition, the SDSU freshman topped the squad with 18 service aces and ranked fourth with 103 setting assists.
Against MW foes, Stewart reached the double-digit dig barrier in 17 of 18 conference matches, highlighted by a career-high 26 scoops in a four-set victory over New Mexico on Oct. 9. In the rematch against the Lobos in Albuquerque on Nov. 8, she recorded her first career double-double with 12 digs and 10 assists.
A heralded prep recruit from Naples, Florida, Stewart ranked fourth in the MW for all matches with an average of 3.73 digs per set, finishing with 433 scoops overall, which is currently 95th nationally and marks the most by an Aztec since Devyn Pritchard collected 546 digs during the 2017 campaign. She also led the team with 31 service aces and was slotted fourth with 162 setting assists (1.40/set).
Stewart has reached double figures in digs in 27 of 29 matches, including 20 or more on four occasions. Earlier in the season, she was named to the all-California Tournament team after averaging 3.86 digs (27 overall) and 2.14 assists (15 overall) across seven sets in two matches vs. Cal and San Francisco, where she additionally contributed three services aces and one kill .
San Diego State is set to battle Wyoming on Wednesday, Nov. 27, in the first round of the Mountain West Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada. First serve is slated for 4 p.m. PT.
2025 MOUNTAIN WEST VOLLEYBALL AWARDS
Player of the Year: Kaylie Kofe, Utah State
Freshman of the Year: Eliza Sharp Boise State
Newcomer of the Year: Jaida Harris, UNLV
Coach of the Year: Rob Neilson, Utah State
All-Mountain West
Zara Stewart, Fr., L, San Diego State
Taylor Underwood, Sr., OPP, San Diego State
Ashley Bible, Sr., OH, Air Force
Eliza Sharp, Fr., MB, Boise State
Layla Smith, Jr., MB, Boise State
Maria Brun, So., OH, Colorado State
Erin Debiec, Fr., S, Colorado State
Halle Jameson, Fr., OH, Colorado State
Eve Wilson, Jr., MB, Colorado State
Addison Haluska, Sr., OPP, Fresno State
Bella Nunez, Fr., S, Grand Canyon
Jaida Harris, So., OH, UNLV
Tierney Barlow, Sr., MB, Utah State
Loryn Helgesen, So., OPP, Utah State
Kaylie Kofe, So., S, Utah State
Mara Štiglic, So., OH, Utah State
Sarah Holcomb, Sr., MB, Wyoming
Paige Lauterwasser, Jr., OH, Wyoming
Honorable Mention
Alysa Walker, So., OH, Air Force
Arianna Bilby OH, Sr., Boise State
Anaelana Ramirez, Sr., OH, Grand Canyon
Haylee Brown, Jr., OH, Nevada
Camila Canedo, Jr., L, New Mexico
Fatimah Hall, Jr., S, San José State
Andrea Simovski, So., OH, Utah State