PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Fresh off one of the most dominant seasons in program history a slew of Plymouth State University women's volleyball student-athletes was honored by the Little East Conference (LEC) with postseason recognition on Thursday.
 
Junior Marissa Plaza (Folsom, Calif.) was crowned the Defensive Player of the Year, while freshman Lilli Stogner (Weare, N.H.) took home Rookie of the Year honors. The duo was also selected to the All-LEC Second Team. Head coach Joan Forge was voted Coach of the Year by her colleagues.
 
Additionally, senior Alexa Price (Moultonborough, N.H.) and junior Emilee Flanagan (Milton, N.H.) also picked up all-conference nods after being selected as All-LEC First Teamers, while senior Hannah Chartier (Weare, N.H.) was the team's representative on the Sportsmanship Team.
 
Marissa Plaza:

• A 5-10 libero/defensive specialist, it was no surprise that Plaza took home the league's top defensive honor. A four-time Defensive Player of the Week honoree, she led the conference in both digs (393) and digs per set (4.32). She served as the team's primary passer, racking up nearly twice as many serve receive attempts as the next closest Panther while passing at .944, the second highest mark on the team. She becomes just the second Plymouth State volleyball player to take home the honor, joining alumna Sarah Spears (2007).

Lilli Stogner:

• A 5-9 outside hitter, Stogner immediately became the team's top attacking option. She averaged 2.86 kills per set, most on the team and fifth in the LEC, while hitting an incredible .285. A two-time Rookie of the Week, her 237 kills topped the team, while she reached double-figures ten times, including 18 in a five-set win at Eastern Connecticut State in late-October. Stogner is just the second Panther to earn the award, the first being LEC Hall of Famer Becky Landry in 2000.

Alexa Price:

• A 5-8 setter, Price finishes her career with 2,589 assists, good enough for fifth in school history. Her 9.98 assists per set average was the highest in the conference and fourth-highest mark in program history. Price also did damage at the service line where she averaged 0.54 aces per set, the sixth-most in the league. It was her first postseason honor.

Emilee Flanagan:

• A 6-2 middle blocker, Flanagan was the team's most efficient hitter after posting a .335 attack percentage to rank fourth in the conference. She finished the year with 210 kills (2.47/set) and led the league with 0.82 blocks per set (70 total blocks). Her 3.13 points per set ranked just outside the top-ten of the LEC. It was her first postseason honor.

Hannah Chartier:

• A 5-5 defensive specialist, Chartier served as one of the team's tri-captains and provided steady back row play when called upon. She averaged 1.50 digs per set while posting a reception percentage of more than 90% to contribute to the Panthers' serve receive success as well.

Head Coach Joan Forge:

• Forge becomes the first two-time LEC Coach of the Year in program history, now winning the award in back-to-back full seasons (no major awards were issued for volleyball during 2020-21). She led the Panthers to an impressive 23-3 record and a perfect 8-0 mark in Little East play to post the program's first unbeaten conference regular season and capture the program's fifth regular season title. Plymouth State was ranked as high as seventh in the NCAA Region I rankings and climbed as high as 11th in the New England Women's Volleyball Association (NEWVA) regional polls, before falling in the semifinals of the LEC Tournament.