Lady Huskies awards announced

Five Lady Huskies have earned all-conference awards this season. Adison Haslam, Naomi McNiven, Sarah McNiven, Paxton Philpott and Breanne Walker join Kenzy Day, Arianna Foster, Ava Jory and Chloe Nguyen from Dubois and Kennedy Bassett, Johnna Clifford, Varissa Olsen, Brooklynn Paxton and Vinaya VanderPloeg from Riverside. 

Burlington’s head coach Erin Bassett believed that all eight of her normal rotation players deserve the honor, but congratulated those on the list.  “They certainly worked hard and played important roles in our success. I believe they all should get a lot of credit as well.” 

This is senior Breanne Walker’s third year in a row to receive all-conference honors and earned all-state honors last year as well. “Breanne has consistently showed up and worked hard for her team. She had some challenges this year with an injury that limited what she would have liked to do, but it didn’t stop her from coming to every practice and every game and giving it 100%. She is a great example of tenacity and grit,” said Bassett.

Junior Naomi McNiven: “Naomi is ‘Miss Consistent.’ She is not only one of our best defenders but also one of our most consistent servers. Naomi is always willing (and capable) to fill in wherever she is asked. She played as a middle blocker for us this season, her height isn’t typical of most middle blockers, but she has great timing and can jump which translates into lots of blocks for Naomi! It was fun to watch her compete this season and get better and better.”

Junior Paxton Philpott: “Everywhere we go, people comment on Paxton’s ability to jump and hang in the air. She is a very dynamic hitter and a great defender. Even after watching her play every day, I would panic and think there is no way she will get to that ball, and yet she does. Paxton can be a game changer and we are happy to have her back for next year.”

This is sophomore Sarah McNiven’s second year in a row to receive all-conference honors. “Sarah is a force to be reckoned with, she is gifted athletically but she is also driven and focused on getting better every day. Sarah is the kind of athlete that if you ask something of her-she makes a point of doing it, every time- not just when you remind her, not just when you’re looking, but every time. She is also the first to celebrate the success of her team and try to lift them up when things aren’t going well. She is a natural leader and an amazing athlete.”

Sophomore Adison Haslam: “Adison is quiet and usually has a pretty serious face, but she digs in and puts in the work. She did a phenomenal job for us as a setter this year. She just quietly goes about her business and works hard to give our hitters what they need. She is pretty savvy and is good about reading situations and asking questions. She led our team in assists this year and is also becoming a great little blocker.”