Riley Hanson, Volleyball
(MB, 5-11, So., Nevis, Minn. / Nevis HS)
After a freshman campaign that included All-NSIC Second Team and NCAA Elite Eight All-Tournament Team honors in helping lead the Golden Bear volleyball program to a seventh consecutive NCAA Championship, Riley Hanson stepped up in a big way during her sophomore season in 2014-15.
She was named an AVCA All-America First Team selection, AVCA & Daktronics All-Central Region and All-NSIC First Team. She led the Golden Bears to a 27-6 overall record as the team finished ranked fourth in the final AVCA Division II Top-25 poll and an 18-2 record in Northern Sun competition for a second place finish.
Hanson also stepped up in the postseason, earning NCAA All-Tournament Team honors for her performance in the NCAA Central Region Championships in Duluth, Minn. as the program reached at least the second round of the national tournament for the 12th consecutive season.
She finished the season ranked second in the Northern Sun and 11th in Division II in hitting percentage, terminating at a .386 rate offensively while also contributing at a high level defensively with 0.91 blocks per set to rank 14th in the conference. She was 14th and 15th, respectively in the Northern Sun in points (3.80/set) and kills (3.29/set).
In just two seasons, Hanson has elevated for 730 kills and 221 blocks while finishing at a .380 clip offensively which would be third in school history with at least 1,500 attempts (she has 1,484 TA in two years). Her 221 total blocks already rank 14th in program history and her 858 total points rank 18th, as well.
The NSIC All-Academic student-athlete is working towards a degree in biology with a minor in mathematics.
