Women’s Rookie of the Year 2026- Jamie Damm

This is award given to a first-year player on the women’s team that has put in a lot of effort and makes an impact on the court. They provide us with throws and catches when it is needed the most. The winner is voted on by her teammates and this year’s winner was Jamie Damm. Let’s take a look at the interview below on her thoughts of winning this award!

Q: How do you feel about winning this award?

A: I am very grateful to receive this award, it means a lot to me to receive recognition for the time I had been putting in.

Q: What was your proudest moment from this season?

A: The catch I had in women’s no-sting against UNL that put us into overtime. I never catch, it’s just not my strongsuit, but that’s my only no-sting catch, and the joy and support I had from my team after that really made it feel like a big moment.

Q: What do you hope to improve on?

Catching, I rarely go for them and almost never get them so I think if I really work on that in both women’s and coed it’ll help me as a player a lot.

Q: What are you looking forward to for the next season?

A: Working more with the team! I absolutely love our team, its like a family to me and I am really really excited to get to practice and play tournaments with them all because this team had given me some of my closest friends.

Q: What is your greatest takeaway from this season?

A: One of my biggest takeaways was that, at the end of the day it’s just dodgeball. It can be easy to get in your head and beat yourself up over a lot of things, but it’s a very small thing in my life compared to everything I’ve ever done, so it’s big for me to remember that it’s just one game, just one practice, because in the grand scheme of things one game won’t make that big of a difference, but how I viewed that whole season does, so brush off one bad game or practice and just keep going and having fun and playing hard because it’s just dodgeball.

Congratulations to Jamie for winning this award and for all of the hard work she’s put in this season!

Rookie of the Year 2026- Stephen Bittner

This is award given to a first-year player on the team that has put in a lot of effort and makes an impact on the court. They provide us with throws and catches when it is needed the most. The winner is voted on by their teammates and this year’s rookie of the year is Stephen Bittner. Let’s take a look at his interview below and how he feels about winning this award!

Q: How do you feel about winning this award?

A: It feels pretty good. I think it shows that I’ve improved quite a bit since the beginning of the season because blocking was my worst skill by far and now it might be my best.

Q: What was your proudest moment from this season?

A: My proudest moment was probably when I was the last player remaining player in one of the points at Nationals and I got an out or two and a catch. I had struggled figuring out how to play best when I was alone before, and that point felt like redemption.

Q: What do you hope to improve on?

A: I’m hoping to improve on throwing this next season. As any tournament goes on, my accuracy and speed goes down and I would like to work on that. 

Q: What are you looking forward to for the next season?

A: I’m looking forward to playing in the center and improving at drawing attention and providing pressure with pump faking.

Q: What is your greatest takeaway from this season?

A: My biggest takeaway is that communication is the most important thing on the court. You are almost never going to be able to make plays without the support of your teammates, and they’re not mind readers. Make sure to communicate effectively!

Congratulations to Stephen for winning this award and for all of the hard work he’s put in this season!

Women’s Rookie of the Year – Alison Draxler

This is award given to a first year player on the women’s team that has put in a lot of effort and makes an impact on the court. They provide us with throws and catches when it is needed the most. After being voted on my teammates, I was chosen for our team’s first Women’s Rookie of the Year. Here are the questions given to me for winning this award!

Q: How do you feel about winning this award?

A: I feel so proud of myself for earning this award. Although I already knew this, it proved to me that I belong on the team and that my teammates also see that. This makes me even more excited to improve and play next season.

Q: What was your proudest moment from this season?

A: It is hard to pick just one moment from the whole season, but my favorite has to be competing at women’s nationals with a full team. Even though we didn’t win in the end, I am so proud of our accomplishments and the number of catches and thrown outs we were able to get.

Q: What do you hope to improve on?

A: Next season I really want to focus and improve on my skills in pinch. My main goal is to get more comfortable with letting throws hit me in order to secure more catches. I know it is possible if I continue going to skills practices.

Q: What are you looking forward to for the next season?

A: I am looking forward to recruiting more players and winning some more games. Our team is already very talented and getting some new rookies will only help us improve.

Q: What is your greatest takeaway from this season?

A: My greatest takeaway is that we are capable of really competing with good teams as long as we work as a team and have good communication. We had lots of close points and games that we could have won if we worked together just a little more.

Rookie of the Year – David Laux

This is award given to a first year player on the team that has put in a lot of effort and makes an impact on the court. They provide us with throws and catches when it is needed the most. The winner is voted on by their teammates and this year’s rookie of the year is David Laux. Let’s take a look at the interview below and what he thinks of winning this award!

Q: How do you feel about winning this award?

A: I feel great! It is awesome to see that all the hard work this year has paid off.

Q: What was your proudest moment from this season?

A: My proudest moment this year was at the tournament in NIU where I got 4 catches in one game and got “rookie of the month for the league”.

Q: What do you hope to improve on?

A: I hope to be more consistent in everything next year especially blocking and throw accuracy.

Q: What are you looking forward to for the next season?

A: I’m looking forward to playing more and being a big part of the team.

Q: What is your greatest takeaway from this season?

A: My greatest takeaway is that I need to watch what my teammates are doing just as much as watching what my enemies are doing.

Rookie of the Year – Eric Sullivan

This is award given to a first year player on the team that has put in a lot of effort and makes an impact on the court. They provide us with throws and catches when it is needed the most. The winner is voted on by their teammates and this year’s rookie of the year is Eric Sullivan. Let’s take a look a the interview below and what he thinks of winning this award!

Q. How do you feel about winning this award?

A. I’m deeply honored and grateful to receive this award. It came as a surprise to me, as there were other candidates who were equally, if not more, deserving of this recognition.

Q. What was your proudest moment from this season?

A. Seeing my performance at nationals exceed my expectations was one of my most rewarding moments of the season, and it was a result of the team’s support and teamwork.

Q. What do you hope to improve on?

A. I hope to improve on my throw and my communication skills on the court.

Q. What are you looking forward to for next season?

A. I hope to improve on my throw and my communication skills on the court.

Q. What is your greatest take-away from this season?

A. My greatest take away from this season is the importance of perseverance and the importance of teamwork.

February 2024 Rookie of the Month- Kate Douglas

Junior #70

The Rookie of the Month award is an award given monthly to a player voted on by their teammates to recognize all the hard work they have put into the team throughout the month. This month’s recipient is junior Kate Douglas. Here’s what she had to say:

1. How do you feel about being voted ROTM?

I feel very proud of myself for making an impact on my teammates and to be voted ROTM.

2. How are you planning on continuing your work? 

I plan on continuing to attend practices and skills sessions when I can, and I hope the team can schedule more hang outs in the future.

3. What are your goals for the remainder of the season? 

I aim to head to nationals on a confident foot much like I had at the spring home tournament. 

4. How have you felt about the season so far? 

This season has been a journey of figuring out my limits as a player and figuring out how to play the game the best I can. 

5. Anything else you’d like to tell the readers?

I hope my growth and improvements have been noticeable because I feel like a better player compared to when I started. 

Congratulations again to Kate Douglas on receiving the Rookie of the Month award. We look forward to seeing who’s next! Go ‘Neers!

Rookie of the Year- Dylan Farby

This is award given to a first year player on the team that has put in a lot of effort and makes an impact on the court. They provide us with throws and catches when it is needed the most. The winner is voted on by their teammates and this year’s rookie of the year is Dylan Fabry. Let’s take a look a the interview below and what he thinks of winning this award!

Continue reading “Rookie of the Year- Dylan Farby”