Taylor French, Senior Outside Hitter | Illinois Wesleyan Titans Women's Volleyball
Taylor French, Senior Outside Hitter | Illinois Wesleyan Titans Women's Volleyball
Illinois Wesleyan University’s women’s volleyball team earned three major individual awards and was named Coaching Staff of the Year in the 2025 All-College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) selections announced Monday.
Senior Taylor French was named CCIW Offensive Student-Athlete of the Year, marking her third consecutive win of this award. According to the conference, she is the first player in league history to receive a postseason specialty award three years in a row. French led the Titans to a regular-season title, topping nearly every attacking category in CCIW play with 98 kills and 20 service aces. She averaged 3.77 kills per set and 4.67 points per set, both leading figures among qualified hitters.
Sophia Feeney, also from Illinois Wesleyan, was recognized as Setter of the Year after averaging 5.73 assists per set and totaling 149 assists during league matches. The junior recorded her season-high of 28 assists against Carthage on October 8.
Jenna Damon from Carthage College received Defensive Student-Athlete of the Year honors. Damon led all conference defenders with an average of 4.35 digs per set and accumulated 135 digs in CCIW play. Her performance included a season-high of 26 digs against Illinois Wesleyan on October 8 and another standout match with 21 digs versus Augustana on September 19.
Elmhurst’s Paige Belfield was named First-Year Student-Athlete of the Year after recording 80 kills and ranking among top first-year hitters with an average of 2.67 kills per set.
The Titans’ coaching staff, led by Kim Nelson-Brown in her thirtieth season, was voted CCIW Coaching Staff of the Year after guiding Illinois Wesleyan to an undefeated conference record (8-0) for their second straight league title since 2021. The team ranked first in several statistical categories including points per set (18.27), hitting percentage (.278), kills per set (14), assists per set (12.54), service aces per set (2.85), and digs per set (15.81). They also held opponents to a .102 hitting percentage and just over eight kills per set—both best marks in the conference.
Other athletes were recognized on First Team and Second Team lists as well as for receiving RESPECT Awards for sportsmanship across member schools.
“Taylor French, Illinois Wesleyan”
“Jenna Damon, Carthage”
“Sophia Feeney, Illinois Wesleyan”
“Paige Belfield, Elmhurst”
“Illinois Wesleyan”
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