Volleyball: Turner, Tadder, Yon earn VaSID All-State honors

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

Three Virginia volleyball players — Grace Turner, Abby Tadder and Veresia Yon — have been named All-State selections by Virginia Sports Information Directors, as was announced by the organization on Tuesday. Turner took home first-team honors, while Tadder and Yon garnered second-team accolades.

Turner was named UVA’s first All-ACC selection since 2016 after finishing eighth in the conference in kills per set (3.45) and points per set (4.11), and third in aces per set (0.38), all of which led the team. She finished the season with 397 total kills, the most by a UVA player in a single season since 2016 and served up 44 aces, the most by a Cavalier since 2013. Turner also posted four double-doubles in 2022 and notched a team-best four 20-kill matches, including a career-high 24 kills at Boston College (Nov. 4). She recorded 19 kills in the Cavaliers’ sweep over Virginia Tech (Nov. 11), the most kills by a UVA player in a three-set match since 2013, which also stand at No. 5 in program history among three-set contests.

Turner also registered a career-high 30.5 points against North Carolina (Sept. 25) with the help of a career-best six service aces. Her six aces against the Tar Heels tied for eighth all-time in UVA history and tied for second among five-set matches. Turner was named Xavier Tournament MVP after leading the Cavaliers to a 3-0 weekend with wins over the Musketeers, Purdue Fort Wayne and Eastern Michigan. She was also named to UVA’s all-tournament team.

Tadder led UVA in total blocks (114.0) and blocks per set (0.99) after appearing in all 115 possible sets in 2022. She also finished second on the team and ninth in the ACC in hitting percentage (.333), which tied for 10th all-time among UVA’s single-season leaders. Tadder shined in the Cavaliers’ first win over Florida State (Oct. 14) since 2010, when she notched a career-high 18 kills and hit .517. Her .517 hitting performance stands at No. 5 all-time by a UVA player in a five-set match and marks the best hitting clip by a Cavalier in a five-set contest since 2014. Tadder posted a career-best three block solos in UVA’s sweep over Notre Dame (Oct. 23). She was named to both Xavier and Florida all-tournament teams prior to the start of conference play.

Yon, who transferred to UVA this past season from West Florida where she was crowned the 2021 AVCA South Region Player of the Year, led Virginia in hitting percentage (.333), which also tied for seventh in the ACC on the season. After coming off the bench the first three weeks of the season, Yon solidified her place as the team’s starting middle blocker alongside Tadder. Yon achieved her season high of seven blocks on two occasions in 2022, including in UVA’s sweep over the Fighting Irish. She hit a whopping .786 (11-0-14) at Boston College (Nov. 4), the best hitting percentage by a UVA player in a five-set match in program history.

VaSID names 44 all-state teams in 23 sports each year, as well as an Academic All-State squad and an all-sports champion in both the University and College Divisions. Membership in VaSID is open to all media relations professionals working at a university or conference in the state of Virginia.

2022 VaSID All-State University Division Women’s Volleyball All-State Awards
Coach of the Year: Lauren Steinbrecher – James Madison University
Defensive Player of the Year: Sophie Davis – James Madison University
Player of the Year: Sophie Davis – James Madison University
Rookie of the Year: Ryann Love – William & Mary  

First Team
Sophie Davis – James Madison University
Miëtte Veldman – James Madison University
Grace Turner – University of Virginia 
Delaney Dilfer – Liberty University
Lydia Burts – Liberty University
Kamryn Bacus – Liberty University
Anna Porter – College of William & Mary  

Second Team
Caroline Dozier – James Madison University
Abby Tadder – University of Virginia 
Eleanor Stothoff – College of William & Mary
Madison Blane – Liberty University
Anabel Zier – Virginia Tech
Veresia Yon- University of Virginia 
Shelby Hernandez – Radford University