AVCA All-America Teams

OMAHA, Neb. -- For the first time in the program's storied history, Missouri State has two volleyball All-Americans in the same season. Senior setter Kinsey Batten and sophomore outside hitter Lily Johnson each earned honorable mention honors from the American Volleyball Coaches Association Wednesday (Dec. 16), with Batten becoming MSU's seventh different All-America selection and Johnson becoming the first player to earn the distinction multiple times in a career.

"I am so proud of both Kinsey and Lily," said head coach Melissa Stokes, who completed her 20th season at MSU this fall. "It is not only an incredible honor for them but for our entire program. To achieve this level of success takes playing the best teams in the country and performing well against the best teams in the country."

The Missouri Valley Conference Setter of the Year, Batten currently leads NCAA Division I with 1,522 assists on the season. The Springfield native finished the year 21 assists shy of MSU's single-season record, while her 11.27 per set average ranks 21st nationally.

Batten led MSU to a .233 team hitting percentage this season, finishing the year with averages of 2.47 digs, 0.76 kills and 0.46 blocks per set. She added 15 double-doubles and 23 matches with at least 40 assists, finishing her career ranked fourth in school history with 2,976 helpers.

Johnson's 620 kills in 2015 are the second-most at MSU and fourth-highest total in MVC history. The MVC Player of the Year led the league with 4.59 kills and 5.09 points per set, hitting .236 on the season with averages of 2.95 digs, 0.36 blocks and 0.30 aces per set.

The outside hitter from Wildwood, Mo., became the first MSU sophomore to reach 1,000 career kills and concluded the season ranked 15th in Missouri State history with 1,115 career kills. Johnson had 20 or more kills in 17 matches, 23 kill-dig double-doubles, and completed a school-record streak of 36 consecutive matches with at least 10 kills. She ranks third nationally in kills and fourth in points in this week's NCAA statistics.

Missouri State went 24-11 overall in 2015 and qualified for its eighth NCAA Tournament since 2003.