She didn't lead the league in kills, but no one hit them with more accuracy.

Hopewell-Loudon senior Brittany Egbert smacked 276 kills out of 479 chances in the regular season, committing just 39 hitting errors on the way to a .495 efficiency rating and the Midland Athletic League's top volleyball honor.

The next-best hitter was Fremont St. Joe freshman Kristin Sessler, who registered a .374 rating by drilling 247 kills and 40 errors on 554 chances. She was one of two freshmen to make the first team.

Egbert also led the MAL with 122 solo blocks, 138 total blocks and 2.3 blocks per game to play a big role in the Chieftains going 11-0 in league play, repeating as MAL champs and gaining a berth in today's district finals against Calvert with a 23-1 mark.

Senior Brianna Richey also landed on the MAL first team to help H-L's Erin Dircksen capture the league's top coaching award. Richey tallied 159 kills, 48 aces and 227 digs.

The Chieftains have not lost in a league match in Dircksen's three seasons at the helm.

The rest of the first team included seniors Ali Mass of Calvert, Paula Kelbley of New Riegel and St. Wendelin's Taylor Burns, juniors Amy Gosche of Lakota and Taylor Conn of Old Fort and freshman Sarah Parker of Mohawk.

Mass gave Calvert 290 kills and 36 aces, Kelbley belted 222 kills and tallied 331 digs and Burns finished with 198 kills and 33 aces and 168 digs.

Gosche registered 298 kills and 169 digs, and Conn compiled 199 kills, 28 blocks and 295 digs.

Sessler had 58 blocks to go with her kill total for St. Joe, and Parker turned in 326 kills and 53 blocks.

Second-team players were Calvert's Alexa Frank, New Riegel's Ashley Reinhart and Emma Ladd, Hopewell-Loudon's Mary Ellen McAllister, St. Wendelin's Brooke Baker, Mohawk's Lindsay Bloom, Lakota's Jessica Hoffman, Seneca East's Kaci Miller and Old Fort's Brittany Adelsperger.