GRAND FORKS, N.D. - Sophomore Annika Smed (Albert Lea, Minn.) became the fifth member of the Fighting Sioux volleyball team to collect Great West Conference Player of the Week honors this season. League officials gave Smed the honor on Tuesday based on her efforts in Saturday's five-set victory over South Dakota at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.

In the victory over the Coyotes that clinched the outright Great West Conference regular season title for the Sioux, Smed tallied a career-high 24 kills and added 15 digs to post her team-leading eighth double-double of the season.

"Annika has been tremendous for us all season and probably could have won this award on a number of occasions," UND head coach Ashley Hardee said. "She does a little bit of everything for us and never comes off the court. Her value to this team is immeasurable and I'm glad we have her for two more years."

Smed enters the Great West Tournament as the only Sioux player with 200-plus kills and digs on the season. She has registered a career-high 283 kills and is one dig shy of eclipsing the 300 mark.

Smed joins teammates Britta Hanson (Sept. 15; Thompson, N.D.), Defin Trefz (Sept. 22; Bagley, Minn.), Megan Langseth (Sept. 29; Alexandria, Minn.) and Erin Joki (Nov. 3; Grand Rapids, Minn.) in earning the league's weekly honor. Senior Lindsay Vortherms (Windom, Minn.) is a three-time recipient of the league's Defensive Player of the Week honor.

The top-seeded Fighting Sioux will open tournament play on Friday at 5:30 p.m. CT in the semifinals against the winner of the four-five match-up between South Dakota and Texas-Pan American.

                                                                               - Go Sioux -