Former Flyer Kayla Bekier collegiate All-American

Despite the season having been over for almost a month, the Owens Volleyball program continues to rack up accolades since winning their second straight NJCAA Division III National Championship. This past week, the program has had three players named to two different All-American teams. 
Tyriana Settles (Fostoria) and Kayla Bekier (Lake) were the two lone players that were named to the NJCAA Division III All-American team. Both were First Team selections.
Settles finished as the top outside hitter in the country, finishing with 640 total kills, which led the country. The freshman finished with 542 total digs, which was ninth best in the country. Settles was also named the NJCAA Division III Volleyball Tournament MVP. She had a team high 41 kills during the three game championship run, and she also finished with 26 digs in the championship match. 
Kayla Bekier finished eighth in the country in kills with 409 and she had an attacking percetange of .358 during the season. The Lake High School alum finished her Express career with 608 total kills during her two year career. She had 33 total kills during the tournament, including 15 against Brookhaven in the semifinal match of the tournament. 
VolleyballMag.com also released their NJCAA Division III All-American list of the weekend. Settles was named the National Player of the Year according to the site. Kayla Bekier was named to the team. Joining them was freshman Rebecca Brown. Brown had an incredible season as a setter, setting a new school record in assists with 1,648 total assists for the season, which was best in the country in Division III too. She also tallied 133 total assists in the three game championship tournament run, which placed her on the All-Tournament team. 
All three players were instrumental in the program's run to a second consecutive national title. The championship was a fitting end to another dominant season for the Express on the volleyball court. Owens began the season as the preseason No. 1 ranked team heading into the 2019 campaign. The Express lost 10 of the 14 players from the year's previous national title team, losing their top three attackers, their top setter, and their starting libero from the year before. Despite the lack of experience, Owens found a way to win their first seven matches in a row to begin the season. After a loss to Glen Oaks on August 30, the Express would reel off 16 straight victories. 
The Express never lost consecutive matches more than once all season, and the team hasn't lost a set since their Region XII championship match against Columbus State back on October 26. Owens also kept their regular season OCCAC winning streak alive, having now won 76 consecutive regluar season matches. The Express captured their fifth straight OCCAC title this season as well. 
The Express won the Region XII tournament and the Mid-Atlantic District Tournament, beating the Cougars both times. 
The Express finish the season with a record of 43-4, marking the fifth straight year the team has won 40 or more games. They finish three wins shy of the all-time mark of 46 victories in a season set by the 2000 and 2002 team. The 43 wins also marks the second most wins in a season since 1994. 
The back to back National Championships is the second time an athletic program has completed such a feat in the school's history. The Owens Men's Basketball program won back to back titles in the 1991-1992 and the 1992-1993 seasons. (— by Owens Sports Information Director Chris Schmidbauer)