OSU Volleyball Announces Four Newcomers for 2016
November 16, 2015 | Women's Volleyball
CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Oregon State volleyball team and head coach Taras Liskevych have announced the additions of four incoming athletes to the class of 2016.
Newcomers included in the 2016 class are Haylie Bennett (Philomath, Ore.), Makenna Browne (Conifer, Colo.), Serena Bruin (Commerce City, Colo.) and Shalom Ifeanyichukwu (Dallas, Texas). Each will compete for the Beavers next season.
“The 2016 class adds a lot of volleyball skill and athletic ability to our program,” Liskevych said. “Each of these athletes has competed at a high junior club level in the United States. They bring experience as well as great athletic upside. It really helps that we bring in athletes from Colorado and Texas into our program – it is important to us to continue that pipeline.”
Read below for further details on each of Bennett, Browne, Bruin and Ifeanyichukwu, along with Liskevych's comments on each of the future Oregon State volleyball players:
Haylie Bennett
6-0 | Middle Blocker/Right Side
Philomath, Ore. (Philomath HS)
Haylie Bennett (Philomath, Ore.) joins the Oregon State volleyball program after playing volleyball for Philomath High School as well as the Boss and NPJ volleyball club teams. Bennett is a three-time all-league selection, beginning with honorable mention honors in 2013 and culminating in a player of the year selection in 2015. Bennett captained her team in each of the 2014 and 2015 seasons, and added team MVP and USA Volleyball High Performance Continental Team honors in her final season.
Bennett also competed in basketball, earning a pair of varsity letters as well an all-conference selection. Academically, she is a member of the National Honor Society and a high school Academic All-American. Bennett is a second generation Oregon State volleyball player, as her mother, formerly Helen Hoonhout, competed for the Beavers from 1987-90. Bennett also represents the continuation of OSU volleyball athletes from Philomath HS, joining recent athlete Laura Schaudt, who competed for the Beavers from 2010-14.
Liskevych on Haylie Bennett:
“She's one of the best volleyball players in the state of Oregon. We want to keep those athletes close to home. She's a very dynamic athlete. She's very quick and is a very good jumper. She's going to come in and be a middle or opposite.”
Makenna Browne
5-5 | Defensive Specialist/Libero
Conifer, Colo. (Conifer HS)
Makenna Browne (Conifer, Colo.) will join the Beavers after competing at Conifer High School as well as for one of the top junior club teams in the nation, the Colorado Juniors. While at Conifer, Browne was a two-time team captain as well as a two-time all-conference selection, earning second-team honors as a sophomore and a first-team selection as a junior.
Browne also competed in track and field in high school, lettering twice. Outside of sports, Browne has been recognized for outstanding community service and is involved in DECA, serving as an office for her high school before becoming a state qualifier. Academically, she was a first-team academic all-state selection and made Conifer's highest honor roll throughout her high school career.
Liskevych on Makenna Browne:
“She's coming in as a defensive specialist/libero and comes from one of the top club teams in the country. She has excellent ball control, is a very hard worker and is really going to help us shore up our back-line defense.”
Serena Bruin
6-2 | Middle Blocker
Commerce City, Colo. (Prairie View High School)
Serena Bruin (Commerce City, Colo.) joined Makenna Browne as a member of the Colorado Juniors club volleyball team, and was a four-year letterwinner for Prairie View High School. Bruin's top honors include a Dream Team selection at middle blocker from PrepVolleyball.com, as well as a selection to the USA Volleyball Elite Team. Rounding out her honors were first and second-team all-conference honors following 2013 and 2014 campaigns in which she led her conference in kills, blocks and service aces.
Bruin capped off her high school honors in her final season with an all-state selection, as well as a selection as conference player of the year.
Outside of volleyball, Bruin rounds out her high school accomplishments with a varsity letter in basketball, as well as membership in the National Honor Society.
Liskevych on Serena Bruin:
“She's someone that we have watched for the past few years. She has a very high ceiling and has gotten better and better in the past couple of years. Serena is an excellent blocker and has the ability and skills to contest for a starting role in the middle right away.”
Shalom Ifeanyichukwu
6-1 | Outside Hitter
Dallas, Texas (Plano HS)
Joining the Oregon State volleyball program out of Plano High School and the Vision and Mad Frog volleyball clubs, Shalom Ifeanyichukwu (Dallas, Texas) continues the Lone Star State pipeline, joining current sophomore outside hitter Mary-Kate Marshall (Coppell, Texas). A silver medalist with USA Volleyball, Ifeanyichukwu was named to the 2015 European Global Challenge All-Tournament team, and rounds out her top honors with selections to PrepVolleyball.com's Sophomore 79 and Dream Team.
Ifeanyichukwu helped her team to back-to-back state championships from 2012-13, earning Newcomer of the Year honors in 2012 and an all-state selection in 2013. In 2014, she was an all-conference selection. Ifeanyichukwu also has experience in sand volleyball, participating in the USA Volleyball A1 Holiday Camp.
Outside of volleyball, Ifeanyichukwu has earned the 4.0 Principal's Award at her school, and was a youth correspondent at the 2014 Washington Journalism and Media Conference. She comes from an athletic family, as her father, Israel, lettered at defensive end and linebacker for USC from 1994-95.
Liskevych on Shalom Ifeanyichukwu:
“She is a force at the net. She hits the ball very hard and has a heavy arm. Shalom projects to either opposite or left side for us. She is a continuance of the Texas pipeline, and from a chemistry standpoint, will add a lot of personality to the court for us.”
For more information on the Oregon State volleyball team, follow the club's official Twitter account at Twitter.com/BeavsVolleyball, by Facebook at Facebook.com/OregonStateVolleyball or on Instagram at Instagram.com/OregonStateVolleyball.
