Nila Lukens named Sky-Em Player-of-the-Year

Outlaws senior Nila Lukens was unanimously selected as the Sky-Em Player of the Year by all of the coaches in the league and was also a first-team all-league selection. Allie Spear (junior), and freshmen Hawley Harrer and Jessie Brigham joined Lukens as first-team picks, and Alex Hartford earned honorable mention.

Lukens is a four-year varsity player and plays outside-hitter. This year, Lukens was recognized as the top player in the league. Nila recorded 101 kills during league and tallied 22 digs. She has a nice float-serve that is very consistent and through the season has rarely missed a serve. Lukens finished league with the highest serving percentage on the team (97 percent). Nila was also a big force at the net largely in part to her huge vertical jump, and was one of the Outlaws' go-to hitters.

"She's been a great kid to coach," said Coach (and mom) Miki McFadden. "Sometimes, when you coach your own child it can be difficult, but it hasn't ever been that way with Nila.

"Nila can jump 32 inches and she hits the ball hard and down, and in our league it was hard for anybody to defend against her."

Spear played outside-hitter and is a great all-around player. Allie is a strong hitter and digs a lot of balls in key spots on defense. She posted 55 kills, 40 digs, and 28 aces during league.

"Allie is a really good athlete and brings a lot of athleticism to the game," stated McFadden. "Her quickness enables her to dig a lot of balls."

Harrer, the Outlaws' six-foot-two-inch freshman, plays at setter and is also a right-side-hitter. Hawley dished out 143 assists in league, had 24 aces, 22 digs and put down 65 kills.

"Hawley has strong hands and can easily move the ball around to our hitters," said McFadden. "She is also a big threat at the net. She hits the ball hard and is tough to dig."

Brigham played at libero (a defensive specialist) and recorded 95 digs, the most of any player on the team. Jessie also tallied 22 aces and was 94 percent from the service line.

Hartford, one of the Outlaws' setters, received honorable mention. Alex finished with 170 assists, 31 aces and 23 digs. McFadden told The Nugget that Alex sets a nice hittable ball and also has a great serve.

"Alex is able to distribute the ball to our hitters," said McFadden. "She also has a nice float-serve and she can pinpoint her serves to anywhere on the court."

McFadden told The Nugget that the Outlaws have such a strong squad that the whole team should all have earned first- or second-team all-league spots, but coaches in the league want votes for their players also.

"Not everybody got what they deserved," stated McFadden. "You're limited because every team wants players on the all-league selections and you can't vote for your own players. Most of the coaches recognized the strength of our team and I was really pleased we got four of the six first-team selections."

Miki McFadden, for the third straight year, was honored as coach of the year.

McFadden said, "It was nice that the coaches felt I did a good job with a talented group of players."