BETHLEHEM, Pa. — American and Bucknell both tallied two of this year's five volleyball major awards when the League office announced its postseason honors on Monday afternoon. Colgate recorded one major award.

American graduate student Zeynep Uzen was named player of the year, while teammate junior Esma Sipahi earned setter of the year honors.

Bucknell junior Jordan Hardy received libero of the year and teammate middle blocker Sidney Shaffer was named rookie of the year.
 
After guiding the Raiders to their third-straight Patriot League regular-season title, Colgate head coach Ryan Baker was named the Patriot League's Barry Goldberg Coach of the Year. It marked the fifth time Baker had received the honor.

Ten student-athletes were named to both the first- and second All-Patriot League teams. Colgate and Navy led the way with four all-League selections each, while American, Army West Point and Bucknell had three members on the all-League teams. Lafayette, Lehigh and Loyola Maryland rounded out the teams with one honoree each.

Uzen is a four-time first-team honoree, while Army West Point senior middle blocker Paige Fixemer earned first-team laurels for the third straight year. Colgate junior outside hitter Abby Shadwick received first-team honors for the second straight year. Army senior outside hitter Savannah Bray, Bucknell's Hardy, Lehigh junior outside hitter Megan Schulte, Loyola junior outside hitter Lauren Link, and Navy seniors Jordan Llewellyn and Averi Miller were named to an All-League team for the second straight year.

The major awards and All-Patriot League teams were voted on by the nine Patriot League volleyball head coaches, who could not vote for their student-athletes or themselves.
 
2023 Patriot League Player of the Year
Zeynep Uzen, American, Gr., OH
* Uzen heads into the postseason with a League-leading 4.03 kills per set and 4.53 points per set.
* The outside hitter has been named to the Patriot League First Team for the fourth time and was named the Patriot League Rookie of the Year in 2019.
* Uzen's 1,687 career kills rank third in the Patriot League and American record books, while her 1,052 digs rank ninth all-time at American. She is the fourth player in program history to record 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs.

2023 Patriot League Setter of the Year
Esma Sipahi, American, Jr., S
* Sipahi leads the Patriot League and American in assists (1,097) and assists per set (10.16) this season.
* The junior is second in the League and first at American in service aces with 39, to go along with 70 total blocks and 234 digs.

2023 Patriot League Libero of the Year
Jordan Hardy, Bucknell, Jr., L
 * Hardy ended her 2023 campaign leading the League and Bucknell in total digs (526) and digs per set (5.60). Her 5.60 digs per set rank fourth nationally.
* Her 94 assists sit in third at Bucknell for the season.
* The junior was named a second-team All-Patriot League honoree last season after leading the League in digs (591).
* Hardy has tallied 1,500 digs in three years which ranks second in program history at Bucknell.

2023 Patriot League Rookie of the Year
Sidney Shaffer, Bucknell, Fr., MB
* Shaffer ended the regular season leading the Bison with 17 solo blocks and 72 block assists.
* Shaffer's 1.11 blocks per set ranks fourth in the Patriot League this season.
* The freshman also recorded 154 kills and 42 digs.
* Shaffer is the third Bucknell student-athlete to earn rookie of the year honors, joining Brandi Trapasso (2000) and teammate sophomore Bri Frazilus (2022).

2023 Patriot League Barry Goldberg Coach of the Year
Ryan Baker, Colgate
* Baker led the Raiders to their third-straight regular season title with a 13-3 Patriot League record and the No. 1 seed in the Patriot League Volleyball Championship.
* This was Colgate's fourth consecutive season with at least 13 Patriot League wins, excluding the shortened 2020-21 campaign.
* Under Baker's leadership, 50 Colgate Volleyball student-athletes have been named All-Patriot League honorees. There have been four players of the year, three setters of the year, two defensive players of the year, and two rookies of the year under him.
* The five-time Patriot League coach of the year is one of two coaches in Colgate volleyball history with more than 300 victories.

2023 Patriot League Volleyball Major Award Winners
Player of the Year: Zeynep Uzen, American, Gr., OH
Setter of the Year: Esma Sipahi, American, Jr., S
Libero of the Year: Jordan Hardy, Bucknell, Jr., L
Rookie of the Year: Sidney Shaffer, Bucknell, Fr., MB
Barry Goldberg Coach of the Year: Ryan Baker, Colgate

All-Patriot League First Team
Esma Sipahi, American, Jr., S
Zeynep Uzen, American, Gr., OH
Savannah Bray, Army West Point, Sr., OH
Paige Fixemer, Army West Point, Sr., MB
Jordan Hardy, Bucknell, Jr., L
Cat Jamison, Bucknell, Sr., OH
Abby Shadwick, Colgate, Jr., OH
Gillian Hauschild, Colgate, Sr., RS
Megan Schulte, Lehigh, Jr., OH
Jordan Llewellyn, Navy, Sr., OH
 
All-Patriot League Second Team
Carlie Fiske, American, Gr., MB
Riley Parchment, Army West Point, Sr., L
Sidney Shaffer, Bucknell, Fr., MB
Sophie Thompson, Colgate, Gr., MB
Sydney Jones, Colgate, Jr., S
Gracie Gibson, Lafayette, Sr., MB
Lauren Link, Loyola Maryland, Sr., OH
Anna Klemeyer, Navy, Sr., MB
Jamie Llewellyn, Navy, Sr., OH
Averi Miller, Navy, Sr., S

Note: Student-athletes are listed by positions; then alphabetically by institution

ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athletes can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League's athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes that are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.