SPRINGFIELD -- A pair of Missouri State volleyball players earned weekly awards from the Missouri Valley Conference Monday (Nov. 9). Emily Butters was honored as the league's Freshman of the Week, while Lily Johnson picked up her third Player of the Week honor of the season.

Butters became the first Missouri State freshman with 400 digs in a season last week as she averaged 5.6 per set in three MSU victories. The libero from Richmond, Texas, helped the Bears' defense limit opponents to a .143 attack efficiency, and began the week with 18 digs on Monday at Evansville.

Friday, Butters lifted 22 digs as the Bears held UNI to .156 hitting in a 3-1 win, then scooped a match-high 16 digs Saturday as MSU limited Drake to .086 hitting while sweeping the Bulldogs. Butters now ranks 16th on MSU's single-season digs list with 439 and is on pace to become the seventh Bear with 500 in a season.

Johnson led Missouri State to a 3-0 week with averages of 5.6 kills, 3.9 digs and 6.25 points per set while hitting .326 with 56 kills against only nine errors. She had a double-double in each match, two matches with at least 20 kills, as well as four aces and five blocks.

The Wildwood, Mo., native began the week with 21 kills, 13 digs and a .315 attack efficiency in three sets at Evansville. Friday against UNI, Johnson blasted 20 kills with just one error, hitting .413 versus the Panthers while adding 11 digs, four blocks and two aces. Saturday, she had 15 kills and 15 digs in MSU's sweep of Drake, hitting .250 and serving two more aces.

The Bears, ranked 40th in the NCAA RPI this week with an 18-9 overall record and 9-5 league mark, visit Bradley at 7 p.m. on Nov. 13.