Beach Volleyball 4/26/2023 12:00:00 PM

Six Sandy Panthers Receive Sun Belt Conference Postseason Honors

ATLANTA— A total of six individuals and three pairs for the No. 14-ranked Georgia State beach volleyball team have been included on the Sun Belt Conference's Beach Volleyball Awards and All-Conference Teams for 2023, as announced on Wednesday.

Highlighting the conference's list of accolades, juniors Angel Ferary and Bella Ferary were named the Sun Belt Pair of the Year for the 2023 season. The sisters also received All-Sun Belt First-Team honors after teaming for 30 dual matches with 28 appearances at the top flight and two appearances at the second flight and notching a 17-13 overall mark.

The Ferary duo downed eight nationally ranked opponents in 2023, including back-to-back wins at Manhattan Beach over top-flight pair Megan Kraft and Delaynie Maple of No. 3 USC, as well as Maggie Boyd and Lexi Denaburg of No. 2 UCLA. The duo's win over USC's Kraft and Maple marked the first and only loss to date for the No. 3-ranked Trojans' top pair in 2023.

Junior Lila Bordis was announced as the Sun Belt's Newcomer of the Year for 2023. Transferring from Arizona State and joining the Sandy Panthers' roster for 2023, Bordis has paired alongside teammate Yasmin Kuck for every match and secured 17 total victories at the second and third flights for GSU.

Bordis and Kuck were also named to the Sun Belt's Second-Team for the pair's 2023 performance that has included six wins over nationally ranked opponents.

Fifth-year Maddy Delmonte and sophomore Ayla Johnson rounded out the team's 2023 honorees, as the pair received All-Sun Belt Second-Team honors after notching 19 victories at the fourth and fifth flights and earning SBC Pair of the Week honors in consecutive weeks to close the regular season.

In addition to the team's individual and pair accolades for the spring, head coach Beth Van Fleet was named the Sun Belt Conference's 2023 Head Coach of the Year. Van Fleet has guided the No. 14-ranked Sandy Panthers to 16 wins in 2023, as the team has downed six nationally ranked opponents while maintaining a ranking of top-15 or better for the extent of the spring.

The Sandy Panthers have faced 21 nationally ranked opponents over the course of the team's 32-match regular-season slate.

Van Fleet and GSU open play at the 2023 Sun Belt Conference Beach Volleyball Championship on April 27. The top-seeded Sandys will battle No. 8 seed Stephen F. Austin for first-round competition.

Dual matches will be contested at the John Hunt Park Sand Volleyball Complex in Huntsville, Ala. and broadcast live on ESPN+. Follow Georgia State beach volleyball on social (@GSUBeachVb) for continued updates as the Sandy Panthers enter the postseason.

Tweet #OurCity

2023 Sun Belt Beach Volleyball Awards

Pair of the Year: Angel Ferary / Bella Ferary, Georgia State
Freshman of the Year: Gabby LaPata, UNCW
Newcomer of the Year: Lila Bordis, Georgia State
Coach of the Year: Beth Van Fleet, Georgia State

All-Sun Belt Conference

First Team
Angel Ferary / Bella Ferary, Georgia State
Gabi Bailey / Kyra Thompson, College of Charleston
Sarlota Svobodova / Madie Lichty, Coastal Carolina
Bri Hagerty / Ashley Thompson, UNCW
Vanessa Hurnikova / Ola Chudzik, Southern Miss

Second Team
Maria Zweig / Ella Reames, College of Charleston
Lila Bordis / Yasmin Kuck, Georgia State
Madison Allred / Raychel Ehlers, Coastal Carolina
Maddy Delmonte / Ayla Johnson, Georgia State
Avery Reynolds / Claire Williamson, ULM
Gabby LaPata / Sadie Sharkey, UNCW
Julia Blazek / Kaitlyn Nowak, ULM

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

#14 Maddy Delmonte: 5' 10"; Sophomore

#1 Angel Ferary: 5' 4"; Junior

#8 Ayla Johnson: 5' 10"; Sophomore

#10 Yasmin Kuck: 5' 11"; Graduate Student

#12 Bella Ferary: 5' 4"; Junior

#11 Lila Bordis: 5' 8"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#14 Maddy Delmonte
: 5' 10"; Sophomore

#1 Angel Ferary
: 5' 4"; Junior

#8 Ayla Johnson
: 5' 10"; Sophomore

#10 Yasmin Kuck
: 5' 11"; Graduate Student

#12 Bella Ferary
: 5' 4"; Junior

#11 Lila Bordis
: 5' 8"; Junior