HICKORY, N.C. — Catawba Valley Community College volleyball player Grace Nelson was named the Defensive Player of the Week by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) this week.

The sophomore libero from Murphy, N.C. is the ninth Red Hawk volleyball player in program history to earn this award.

"Receiving this honor is one of the best feelings, especially as our season is coming to a close," Nelson said. "It's incredibly easy to look good when you're playing beside and behind amazing teammates. I am very thankful and appreciative for everyone that has poured into me during my time here at Catawba Valley."

Nelson played in 23 sets last week, recording 130 digs (5.65). Her performance helped the Red Hawks go 3-1 on the week, including three hard-fought five-set victories.

This season, Nelson leads the Red Hawks with 328 digs and 5.05 digs per set.

This is the 12th time in Red Hawk volleyball program history that one of its players has received a weekly honor from the NJCAA.

The Catawba Valley Community College volleyball program awaits its seeding for the Region 10 volleyball tournament, which starts this week at host Wake Tech in Raleigh, N.C.

All-time NJCAA Volleyball Players of the Week at CVCC
Leah Wells, outside hitter - Oct. 7-13, 2013
Megan Fair, outside hitter - Aug. 31 to Sept. 6, 2015
Katelyn Houser, libero - Oct. 19-25, 2015
Mariah Wallace, outside hitter - Oct. 10-16, 2016
Emily Williams, libero (defensive) - Aug. 22-Sept. 2, 2018
Rachel Delcamp, outside hitter (defensive) - Sept. 17-23, 2018
Emma Clark, middle hitter (defensive) - Oct. 22-28, 2018
Emma Clark, middle hitter (defensive) - Sept. 30 to Oct. 6, 2019
Emma Clark, middle hitter (offensive) - Oct. 21-27, 2019
Caitlin Dailey, libero (defensive) - Jan. 25-31, 2021
Caitlin Dailey, libero (defensive) - March 15-21, 2021