PORTLAND, Ore. – Chaminade University setter
Alexia Byrnes (Chicago/Youngstown State/Saint Francis HS) and middle blocker
Lataisia Saulala (Morgan Hill, Calif./Oakwood) were named Thursday morning to the 2022 Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) All-West Region Second Team.
Byrnes helped lead the Silverswords to consecutive Pacific West Conference championships for the first time in school history. The 2022 PacWest Player of the Year and two-time PacWest Setter of the Year is averaging 7.15 assists per set and has evenly distributed the attack where five Silverswords are averaging between 2.62 and 1.38 kills per set.
The senior, who earned D2CCA All-Region honors for the second straight season, is also fifth in the conference in service aces at 0.43 per set while the 'Swords as a team are the sixth-highest serving team in the nation at 2.45.
Saulala earns her first all-region honor as one of the PacWest's most efficient and blocking leaders. The senior is second in the conference in hitting percentage at .330 and is third in blocks at 1.01 per set. She is part of a Chaminade squad that leads the PacWest in hitting percentage (.243, 36th nationally) while opponents are hitting a conference-low .140 which is tied for 26th in Division II.
Earlier this season, Saulala broke the school total blocks record and has 371 entering Thursday afternoon's NCAA West Region first round matchup against Alaska Anchorage. During her five-year collegiate career (which includes the NCAA's season-of-competition waiver to grant an extra year of athletic eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic), Saulala has been a part of 93 wins since her freshman season in 2018.
Alaska Anchorage right-side hitter Eve Stephens was named the D2CCA West Region Player of the Year.
