Gophers OH Julia Hanson named Big Ten POTW

The breakout season continues for Minnesota Golden Gophers outside hitter Julia Hanson.

Monday, she was named the Big Ten’s Player of the Week for her performance over the past two matches.

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She becomes the first Gophers volleyball player to win Big Ten Player of the Week since Nov. 7, 2022. She's the second Gopher to earn a weekly honor this season, joining Phoebe Awoleye.

The junior from Savage had averaged 5.31 points, 5.00 kills, 1.38 digs and 0.38 blocks per set in Minnesota’s wins over Northwestern and Ohio State last week. For the season, she leads the team and is among the leaders in the Big Ten with 3.56 kills per set.

In a sweep of Northwestern , Hanson posted 19 kills on .529 hitting with four digs and a block. She followed that up with 21 kills (her second-ever match with at least 20 kills), seven digs, two blocks and an ace in a comeback five-set win at Ohio State on Sunday .

Hanson has now tallied at least 10 kills in 15 matches this season. Before this year, she’d only reached double-digit kills twice.

Hanson and the Gophers will hit the road again this weekend to take on Michigan State on Friday and Michigan on Sunday. Friday’s match is slated for a 5 p.m. start with Sunday’s scheduled for 1 p.m. Both will be streamed on B1G+.

The complete list of Big Ten weekly award winners is below.

• Player: Minnesota's Julia Hanson

• Defensive: Nebraska's Andi Jackson

• Setter/Freshman: Penn State's Izzy Starck