Fox Valley Lutheran’s Schmitz earns unanimous first-team honors on 2024 All-North Eastern Conference Girls Volleyball Team

By Paul Lecker
AppletonSportsPage.com

Fox Valley Lutheran junior Riley Schmitz was a unanimous first-team selection and one of five Foxes named to the 2024 All-North Eastern Conference Girls Volleyball Team, which was voted on by the 10 conference coaches following the recent season.

Schmitz was a defensive stalwart as the Foxes’ libero, helping Fox Valley Lutheran to a share of the NEC championship, along with Freedom and Luxemburg-Casco.

Schmitz, along with Freedom’s Avery Lang and Waupaca’s Peyton Carlson were unanimous first-team honorees. Others picked to the first team were Freedom’s Lilli Big Eagle and Ava Wall, Luxemburg-Casco’s Aubrey Frey and Alayna Deprez, and Oconto Falls’ Amber Otto. Lang was named Player of the Year.

Four FVL seniors were second-team selections as hitters Hannah Uhlenbrauck and Sophia Wunderlich, and setters Ava Patchett and Molly Bixby, were among the eight picks.

2024 All-North Eastern Conference Girls Volleyball Team
(*denotes unanimous selection)
First team: Lilli Big Eagle, so., setter, Freedom; *Riley Schmitz, jr., libero, Fox Valley Lutheran; *Avery Lang, sr., outside hitter/defensive specialist, Freedom; Eva Wall, sr., middle blocker, Freedom; Aubrey Frey, so., outside hitter, Luxemburg-Casco; Alayna Deprez, jr., setter, Luxemburg-Casco; Amber Otto, sr., outside hitter, Oconto Falls; *Peyton Carlson, jr., outside hitter/defensive specialist, Waupaca.
Second team: Hannah Uhlenbrauck, sr., right side hitter, Fox Valley Lutheran; Sophia Wunderlich, sr., right side hitter, Fox Valley Lutheran; Ava Patchett, sr., setter, Fox Valley Lutheran; Molly Bixby, sr., setter, Fox Valley Lutheran; Ella Vander Velden, sr., outside hitter, Luxemburg-Casco; Lucy Ripley, so., outside hitter, Oconto Falls; Izzy Otto, so., setter, Oconto Falls; Kaia Leick, sr., libero, Wrightstown.
Honorable mention: McKaylee Stephenson, sr., outside hitter/defensive specialist, Clintonville; Bailey Loose, sr., libero, Clintonvile; Audrey Baugnet, sr., setter, Denmark; Paige Selner, jr., outside hitter, Denmark; Alana VanWychen, jr., libero, Little Chute; Izzy VanHandel, so., setter/right side hitter, Little Chute; Rylan Kaminski, jr., libero, Luxemburg-Casco; Campbell Onell, sr., middle blocker, Luxemburg-Casco; Natalie Poquette, sr., setter, Marinette; Natalie Waller, sr., libero, Waupaca; Rossalyn Wehmeyer, sr., middle blocker, Waupaca; Brynn Bousley, sr., middle blocker, Wrightstown; Ella Fandrey, sr., setter, Wrightstown.
Player of the Year: Avery Lang, Freedom.