The awards continue to roll in for the Valpo volleyball team, as sophomore right side Ava Helming (Johnston, Iowa/Johnston) has been named the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week after posting back-to-back big performances on the attack in a pair of Beacon wins last week.
 
Helming led the way for the Beacons last Tuesday as they earned their first win over UIC since the Flames joined the MVC, tying for match-high honors with 15 kills while swinging at a .520 clip. The sophomore followed on Saturday by helping to lift a shorthanded Valpo squad to a rally from two sets down for a win at Southern Illinois, matching her Tuesday performance on the attack with 15 kills on .520 hitting.
 
For the week, Helming averaged 3.75 kills/set on .520 hitting — the best hitting percentage by a Valley player last week. She is the first Valpo player since Mallory Januski in September 2022 to hit at least .500 with double-figure kills in consecutive matches, and the first to hit at least .500 with 15 or more kills in consecutive matches since Allison Sears in October 2008.
 
Helming earned Player of the Week honors for the second time in her career, while it is her fourth overall weekly accolade from the MVC office. Valpo has claimed at least one weekly award in each of the first three weeks of Valley play, with five different players combining for seven honors so far this season.