MSU VOLLEYBALL: Spartans Add Two Transfers For Fall 2016
East Lansing, Mich. --Michigan State volleyball coachCathy Georgehas announced the addition of two transfer student-athletes who will join the Spartan program for the fall of 2016: outside hitter Maddie Haggerty (Glen Ellyn, Ill.) and defensive specialist Kristen Brashear (Louisville, Ky.).
Brashear, who played her first three seasons at Ole Miss, will be eligible to play immediately and is expected to contribute to the Spartans' defensive efforts in the 2016 season. Haggerty, who began her collegiate career at Nebraska, cannot play for the Spartans until the fall of 2017 after playing as a redshirt freshman at Central Florida in 2015.
"We are thrilled to add both Kristen and Maddie to our program," noted George. "Both players bring a wealth of experience from high-level club backgrounds and collegiate play. Kristen and Maddie are sure to strengthen our depth and our team's volleyball knowledge - and they share a high level of competitive fire and volleyball skill. We are excited to have them here this summer and training with our returning players, which we believe will be a critical piece to establishing on-court chemistry and consistency as we head into the fall."
Michigan State returns 12 players from the 2015 season, and will add seven players for the fall -- in addition to Haggerty and Brashear, fellow transferSarah Shafiq(Glencoe, Ill) enrolled at Michigan State in January and will be eligible, along with Haggerty, in 2017. FreshmanOlivia Bishop(Traverse City, Mich.) enrolled at MSU in January, and will be joined by classmates Samantha McLean (Grand Rapids, Mich.) Maggie Midgette (Westlake, Ohio) and Lauren Swartz (Pittsburgh, Penn.) this summer in East Lansing.
Among returning players, the Spartans will be led by rising seniorsChloe ReinigandAllyssah Fittererand junior setterRachel Minarick, all who have earned AVCA All-Region honors in their careers. Redshirt juniorAutumn Bailey, who was a two-time Honorable Mention AVCA All-America and the BIG EAST Player of the Year in 2014 at Marquette will also return to the court after suffering an ACL injury in MSU's first game last season at Kentucky.
Kristen Brashear
Sr., DS/L, 5-9, Louisville, Ky /Sacred Heart Academy Club: Adidas Union
Junior (2015, at Ole Miss):Ranked seventh in the SEC in digs per set ( 3.94), and seventh in SEC matches only ( 4.14) ... Also ranked sixth in the SEC in aces per set (0.31) ... Ranks fifth at Ole Miss with 950 career digs ... Helped lead the Rebels to the Magnolia Invitational title for the eighth time in nine years (8/28-9/1), averaging 3.70 digs per set for the weekend and adding six assists and six service aces ... Averaged 3.82 digs per set to help Ole Miss to the Rebel Classic title (9/10-11) ... Posted a career-high 30 digs in a 3-1 win against Lipscomb (9/16) ... Named to the Fight Like Hal All-Tournament Team (9/18-19) at UAB, where she averaged 3.09 digs per set to help the Rebels hit .316 for the weekend ... Tallied 18 digs and seven assists at No. 5 Florida (9/25) ... Recorded a career-high five service aces against Mississippi State (9/27) ... Recorded 20 digs to help lead the Rebels to a 3-0 sweep of Georgia (10/9), and earned SEC Defensive Player of the Week honors for her effort (10/12) ... Recorded 20 digs and four assists to help lead the Rebels to a big 3-2 win at Arkansas (10/18) ... Notched 17 digs in the 3-1 win vs. Tennessee (10/23) ... Tallied 14 digs, four service aces and six assists in 3-1 win at Georgia (10/28) ... Notched 16 digs in the win over South Carolina (11/1) ... Totaled a match-high 21 digs to help the Rebels sweep the season series vs. Arkansas (11/6) ...Tallied 21 digs in a five-set loss at Auburn (11/20) ... Recorded 21 digs in the second loss to Missouri (11/22) ...
Sophomore (2014, at Ole Miss):Appeared in all 32 matches ... Finished with 210 digs ... Posted 16 digs at Texas A&M ... Tallied eight digs in a win over South Carolina ... Posted eight digs in a win over Auburn ... Notched nine digs, one kill, one service ace and one assist to help the Rebels edge Alabama in five ... Tallied five digs in the win over Mississippi State ... Posted four digs in the win over Missouri ... Tallied 16 digs in a five-set loss at South Carolina ... Posted a season-high 16 digs and 3 assists in the win over Jacksonville State ...
Freshman (2013, at Ole Miss):Started at libero in each of Ole Miss' opening 15 matches ... Second on the team with 2.44 digs per set ... Her 21 service aces was the second highest total on the team ... Had 11 digs in a win over LSU to close out the year (11/27) ... Recorded 13 digs at Auburn (11/24), her highest total in an SEC match on the season ... Named to the GW Invitational All-Tournament team (8/30-31), where she recorded a career-high 28 digs against the host school - the third most in single-match history at Ole Miss, and the most by a freshman in program history.
Club:Played for Adidas Union in club ball under coach Andy Cavins' direction ... Won the 2009 JDVA National Championship ... Finished third at the 2009 AAU Nationals ... Also finished third at the 2008 AAU Nationals while playing with KIVA.
High School:Earned All-District and All-State honorable mention distinctions as a senior ... Nominated to the Under Armour High School All-American watch list ... Three-year letterwinner ... Played at Sacred Heart Academy for Eric Bravey ... Active in community service and named to the honor roll ... Was a Student Council officer for two years ... Secretary/treasurer and vice president for 100 club.
Personal:Daughter of Tom and Peggy Brashear ... Has one older sister, Taylor ... Mother played tennis at Western Kentucky and cousin played soccer at Transylvania ... ... Born June 24, 1995.
Maddie Haggerty
Jr., OH, 6-2, Glen Ellyn, Ill. / Wheaton-St. Francis Club: Sports Performance
Redshirt Freshman (2015, at Central Florida):Averaged 2.0 kills per set and hit .175, appearing in all 32 matches ... averaged 1.57 digs and 0.49 blocks per set ... Made her UCF debut in the season opener against Northern Colorado (8/28) ... Had a 10 kills against North Dakota State at Minnesota's Diet Coke Invitational (9/11), where she also hit a season- and career- best .400 vs. the host Gophers ... Recorded 12 kills against Seattle (9/17) ... Tallied a career-best 17 kills, 12 digs and three aces v. Houston (10/4) ... - Served up a career-best four aces against Tulsa (10/18) ... Matched her career-best with four aces at USF (10/21), including three in a four-point span in the second set.
Freshman (2014, at Nebraska):Redshirted.
Club:Played for Sports Performance (Ill.), helping capture 2012 and 2013 AAU 18 Open National Championships ... Tabbed as the No. 18 recruit in the country on PrepVolleyball.com's 2013 Senior Aces List and a 2013 Volleyball Magazine Fab 50 selection ... Named a 2013-14 Under Armour Second-Team All-American ... 2013 PrepVolleyball.com Third-Team Club All-American ... Named a Top 50 Junior in 2012 by PrepVolleyball.com.
High School:Guided Wheaton-St. Francis to an appearance in the semifinals at the 2013 Asics Challenge ... Tallied 133 kills and 155 digs during her senior season and hit .322 ...Helped St. Francis to the 2012 Illinois 3A state championship as a junior ... Was part of the team that won a state title in 2011, but was unable to play due to an injury ... Posted 280 kills on the season and notched 145 digs prior to her injury ... Helped Benet Academy to the Illinois 4A state title as a sophomore with 16 kills in the title game against Cary-Grove ... Was named to PrepVolleyball.com's 2011 Soph 79 list.
Personal:Daughter of Jerry and Stacey Haggerty ... Sister, Meghan, was a two-time Honorable Mention All-America at Nebraska (2012, 2013).
