Women's Volleyball

FOUR NAMED TO NJCAA ALL-REGION FIRST-TEAM

FOUR NAMED TO NJCAA ALL-REGION FIRST-TEAM
Posted: Nov 13, 2025

Ottumwa, IA – Four members of the Indian Hills Volleyball squad have been named to the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) DI Volleyball All-Region 11 First-Team, announced Thursday by the conference office.

A quartert of sophomores – Luana Silva Ferreira (Guimaraes, Portgual/Martins Sarmento), Ana Luiza Caminha Matos (Betim, Brazil/Augusto de Lima), Piper Nelson (Atkins, IA/Benton), and Asialin Powell (Des Moines, IA/Roosevelt) were recognized for their efforts after leading the Warriors to another national tournament berth. The Warriors captured the NJCAA DI Volleyball Midwest A District Championship for the fourth consecutive season and are set to compete at the NJCAA DI Volleyball National Championship next week.

In addition to the four All-Region selections, Powell was named the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC) DI Volleyball Player of the Year while head coach Lyndsey Michel was tapped as the ICCAC DI Volleyball Coach of the Year.

READ MORE: POWELL NAMED ICCAC PLAYER OF THE YEAR

READ MORE: MICHEL NAMED ICCAC COACH OF THE YEAR

Powell starred on the defensive front for the Warriors, anchoring the program as the team's primary libero. A two-time NJCAA DI Volleyball National Defensive Player of the Week and five-time ICCAC Defensive Player of the Week, Powell served as one of the top defensive playmakers in the nation.

The sophomore currently ranks fifth in the nation with 635 total digs and 5.57 digs/set on the year. Powell's 635 digs rank in the top-10 in a single season in school history and is just 50 digs shy of 1,000 for her career at Indian Hills. Powell posted double-digit dig totals in all but one match on the year, including 17 matches with at least 20 digs.

Nelson put together an impressive sophomore campaign for the Warriors that saw the outside hitter power the offense. Nelson tallied a career-high 314 kills on the season to surpass 500 kills for her career at Indian Hills. The sophomore added 48 service aces to go along with 306 digs and 22 total blocks for a well-balanced attack on the year.

A four-time ICCAC Athlete of the Week, Nelson posted 17 matches with double-digit kills while recording eight double-doubles on the year.

Luiza paced the offense as the team's primary setter throughout the duration of the year, playing in 102 of a possible 114 sets. Luiza served as one of the top distributors in the nation and currently ranks second in the nation in assists/set with a 10.99 mark while the sophomore's 1,121 total assists rank fourth in the NJCAA.

Luiza tallied 20 matches with at least 30 assists on the year, including 10 contests with more than 40 helpers. Luiza has elevated her performance down the stretch, averaging 42.7 assists/match over the team's last six contests heading into the national tournament. The sophomore added 40 total blocks on the year along with 190 digs, all career-highs.

Ferreira served as a consistent presence at the net throughout the year, leading the Warriors with a career-high 97 blocks, including 37 solo stops. The sophomore middle blocker led the ICCAC in blocks/set (0.92) and ranked second overall in total blocks.

The reigning ICCAC Defensive Player of the Week, Ferreira added a versatile approach on the offensive attack as well, leading the conference with a .316 hitting percentage on the year. Ferreira tallied a career-high 211 kills on 421 attempts.

The Warriors are now set to compete at the NJCAA DI Volleyball National Championship for the fourth consecutive year. Indian Hills earned the No. 16 overall seed in the tournament and will take on No. 1 seed Miami Dade College (FL) at 4:00 PM on November 19 in Clarksville, TN.

READ MORE: WARRIORS EARN NO. 16 SEED AT NATIONAL TOURNAMENT

NEW YEAR - WHAT TO KNOW

Fans can keep up the Indian Hills Volleyball squad all year long through a number of ways:

HOW TO WATCH

As always, GoHillsTV provides free live broadcasts of all Indian Hills home volleyball games. Fans can tune in a number of ways all season long:

  • GoHillsTV App: Download the Iowa Media Network app on your android or ios device and navigate to the GoHillsTV section
  • Website: https://www.iowamedianetwork.com/gohillstv to catch all live and archived information
  • Roku Streaming Device (new):  Have a Roku TV or streaming stick? Download the GoHillsTV app to start streaming today!

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