Penn State setter Bogner named 2021 EIVA Player of Year

Setter Cole Bogner after spearheading No. 8/8 Penn State to have one of the best offenses in the nation is earning the top individual honor in the EIVA.

The EIVA announced Tuesday that Bogner was selected as the 2021 Ulvado Acosta Memorial EIVA Player of the Year.

Bogner was second in the conference with a 9.82 assists per game average and guided the offense to sixth-best attack percentage in the nation at .325. In addition, the junior setter defensively was in the top 15 of the EIVA with both 103 digs and 31 blocks.

Penn State (19-3, 16-2 EIVA) had its best record in more than a decade as it won the EIVA regular season championship and entered the No. 1 overall seed for the upcoming EIVA Tournament.

This is the second setter in Penn State’s program history to win the EIVA Player of the Year. Bogner also is the 15th Nittany Lion to win this conference honor.

Along with the Nittany Lions winning the EIVA Player of the Year, outside attacker Michael Valenzi was named the EIVA Freshman of the Year. Valenzi was among the Penn State leaders with a 2.33 kills per game average during the regular season.

Danny Goncalves was selected on Tuesday as the EIVA Coach of the Year after guiding NJIT to a second-place finish in the conference and its highest national ranking in program history.

The six-team EIVA Tournament will begin with the two opening round matches this weekend.

First-Team All-EIVA

Setter: Cole Bogner, Penn State
Setter: Diego Villafane, Charleston
Opposite: Cal Fisher, Penn State
Outside attacker: Michael Fisher, Saint Francis
Outside attacker: Alvaro Gimeno, NJIT
Outside attacker: Julian Meissner, NJIT
Outside attacker: Brett Wildman, Penn State
Middle attacker: Luca Berger, NJIT
Middle attacker: Joshua Blair, Saint Francis
Libero: Will Bantle, Penn State

Second-Team All-EIVA

Opposite: Hayden Wagner, George Mason
Outside attacker: Blake Bartles, Charleston
Outside attacker: Sam Greenslade, George Mason
Outside attacker: Michael Valenzi, Penn State
Middle attacker: Brad Creamer, George Mason
Middle attacker: Martin de Chavarria, NJIT
MIddle attacker: Jack Reese, George Mason
Middle attacker: Ismael Sneed, Charleston
Libero: Sean Drexl, Charleston
Libero: Joe Kennedy, NJIT

All-EIVA Honorable Mention

Setter: Griffin Fieseler, NJIT
Setter: Zach Talamoa, George Mason
Middle attacker: Thomas Leahey, Saint Francis
Middle attacker: Sam Marsh, Penn State
Libero: Timothy McIntosh, Sacred Heart