SACRAMENTO, Calif.-- A trio of North Dakota volleyball players have earned All-Big Sky Conference First Team honors, announced Thursday by league officials. Seniors Faith Dooley and Sydney Griffin were each repeat winners after each being named last season, joining junior Jordan Vail's first all-league selection. Sacramento State, Portland State and UND each had three first-team selections to lead the way.

Dooley became North Dakota's first-ever four-time all-conference member, garnering her third first-team nod this year. The Wheatland, N.D., native broke the school record for blocks early in her senior season, a mark that previously stood for 26 years. She goes into the Big Sky Conference Tournament needing just five total blocks to become the league's all-time leader as well. She currently sits in third place in career kills at North Dakota with 1,390 and has three double-doubles this season. The 6-foot-3 Dooley is hitting a career-best .353 this year to bring her career hitting percentage to .319, second-highest in UND history.

Griffin, last season's Big Sky Player of the Year, is having another fantastic campaign as she leads North Dakota in defense of its league title. The Marshall, Minn., native has a team-high 15 double-doubles this season and recorded the conference's lone triple-double this year with a 42-assist, 19-dig, 10-kill effort at Sacramento State on Oct. 5. She'll hope to duplicate those numbers at the Hornets' Nest when UND opens the eight-team tourney Thursday against seventh-seeded Weber State in the quarterfinals. She is among the nation's leaders in total assists (1,262) and recently surpassed the 4,000-mark becoming just the third North Dakota player in history to do so.

Vail enjoyed a breakout junior season, accounting for 261 kills while attacking at a .332 clip. She has added 110 total blocks to the mix and has come on down the stretch, totaling double figures in kills in 10 of her last 12 matches played. The San Antonio, Texas product becomes the fifth different UND player to be named to the first team in the last two seasons (Chelsea Moser and Tamara Merseli last year).

Top-seeded Sacramento State took home this year's Most Valuable Player (Kennedy Kurtz) and Coach of the Year (Ruben Volta).

North Dakota enters Thursday's action already holding the school mark for wins in a season (27) as it aims for its second straight trip to the NCAA Tournament.

First Team All-Conference
Name                           School                     Cl.      Poition               Hometown
Kennedy Kurtz^#        Sacramento State     Sr.        Setter                 Tucson, Ariz.
Faith Dooley#             North Dakota            Sr.         Middle Blocker   Wheatland, N.D.
Sarah Sharp                Idaho                        Jr.         Outside Hitter     Filer, Idaho
Erin Clark                    Portland State          Sr.         Setter                  Chino Hills, Calif.
Sydney Griffin #          North Dakota            Sr.          Setter                  Marshall, Minn. 
Mikaela Nocetti           Sacramento State    Jr.          Outside Hitter     Carmichael, Calif.
Shannon Boyle           Sacramento State    Sr.          Outside Hitter     Ridgefield, Wash.
Abby Akin                   Northern Arizona      So.         Middle Blocker   Phoenix, Ariz.
Kaylie Jorgenson        Northern Arizona      Jr.          Outside Hitter    Saskatoon, Canada
Caitlin Bettenay          Portland State          So.         Outside Hitter     Queensland, Australia
Jordan Vail                  North Dakota            Jr.          Middle Blocker    San Antonio, Texas
Tasha Bojanic              Portland State          Sr.         Libero                  Belgrade, Serbia

^ MVP
# Indicates two-time First Team selection

Second Team All-Conference                         
Name                           School                     Cl.      Poition               Hometown
Kaela Straw                 Idaho                         Jr.       Outside Hitter      Spokane, Wash.
DeVonne Ryter            Idaho                         Jr.       Middle Blocker     Sedona, Ariz.        
Heaven Harris              Northern Arizona      Fr.       Opposite Hitter    Phoenix, Ariz.
Abby Garrity               Idaho State                 Jr.       Outside Hitter      Roseville, Calif.
Amanda Varley           Weber State                Sr.      Outside Hitter      Bountiful, Utah
Kortney Lockey           Northern Colorado      Jr.       Outside Hitter     Eaton, Colo. 
Mikaelyn Sych             Portland State             Jr.      Middle Blocker    Alberta, Canada
Andrea Hale                Weber State                Jr.      Outside Hitter     Salem, Utah
Ashley Seiler                Eastern Washington  Sr.       Outside Hitter    Cheney, Wash.
Lana Brown                 Sacramento State       Jr.      Middle Blocker   Redding, Calif.
Emily O'Neil                 Northern Colorado      Jr.      Middle Blocker   Miamia Shores, Fla.
Chloe Hirst                   Idaho State                 Sr.      Outside Hitter    Salt Lake City, Utah

Most Valuable Player
Kennedy Kurtz            Sacramento State   Sr.         Setter                 Tucson, Ariz.

Newcomer of the Year
Alycia Wodke              Idaho                       Jr.       Libero                 Eugene, Ore.

Libero of the Year   
Tasha Bojanic              Portland State         Sr.       Libero                 Belgrade, Serbia

Outstanding Freshman of the Year
Heaven Harris              Northern Arizona    Fr.      Opposite Hitter   Phoenix Ariz. 

Coach of the Year 
Ruben Volta                Sacramento State