Upcoming Event: Volleyball at Nebraska on September 12, 2025 at 5:00 PM
5:00 PM
Volleyball
at Nebraska
Baird Named Mountain West Conference Co-Player Of The Year
11/25/2008 12:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 25, 2008
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Lori Baird of the No. 21 Utah volleyball team was named Mountain West Conference Co-Player of the Year, the conference office announced Tuesday. Kathryn Haynie, Emillie Toone, and Karolina Bartkowiak joined Baird on the All-MWC team as selected by the league's nine coaches.
"I felt that all four players deserved this recognition for the body of work they have put together during this conference season and with this team in general," Utah head coach Beth Launiere said. "I'm happy that my peers in the conference saw how they contributed to the special season we have had."
Baird earned MWC Player of the Year distinction for the first time in her career and earned her third career all-conference selection. Baird is 17th in the nation and second in the conference with 1.38 blocks per set. She ranks third in the MWC in kills per set with a team-high 3.10 mark, and is also among the top 15 in the conference in hitting percentage (.292) and aces per set (0.23).
"[Baird] did everything for us this season," Launiere said. "Her statistics are impressive and she played great in the middle and on the outside. She showed a lot of versatility all year that allowed us to put together different game plans so we would match up better with our opponents."
In MWC action, Baird led the league with 1.60 blocks per set, finished fifth in kills at 3.11 per set, sixth in aces per set (0.28) and finished seventh in hitting percentage (.339).
The middle blocker from Murray, Utah, led the Utes in kills in 13 matches this season and posted a team-high mark in blocks 11 times. Baird also registered three of her seven career double-double performances this season, including 15 kills and 10 blocks at then-No. 15 Colorado State, a career-high 21 kills and 10 blocks against New Mexico, and a school-record 16 block assists and 11 kills at BYU.
Baird is tied for second place in school history with 561 block assists and is third in school history with 608 career total blocks. Baird needs 62 blocks to catch Utah's all-time leader Kim Turner, who had 670 total blocks between 2000 and 2003. She broke the 1,000-kill career barrier at then-No. 15 Colorado State and now stands seventh in school history with 1,192 career kills.
Baird shared the honor with New Mexico's Jeanne Fairchild.
Haynie, a senior from North Salt Lake City, Utah, earned the first all-conference recognition of her career. Haynie posted a team-high seven double-doubles and now has 19 in her career. She led or tied for the team lead in kills 12 times this year and led or tied for Utah's team-high mark in digs during seven matches. Haynie became the 11th member of Utah's 1,000-kill club during the Oct. 9 UNLV match at Crimson Court and now stands eighth in school history with 1,114 career kills. She teamed with Baird to become the first duo of Utah players to simultaneously accumulate more than 1,000 career kills. Haynie is also a two-time ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA All-District VIII First-Team and MWC Scholar-Athlete.
"I'm so pleased that the coaches around the league recognized how valuable [Haynie] is to our team," Launiere said. "There wasn't anything she couldn't do out on the floor for us this season. She was one of our top hitters, our top server and one of our primary passers so I'm proud to see her get the recognition she deserves." Toone, a native of American Fork, Utah, earned her second career All-MWC selection, following her first in 2006. She leads the MWC with a .394 hitting percentage, which ranks 16th in the nation. Toone is third on the team with 216 kills, while only committing 43 errors on 439 swings. She is second on the team and third in the MWC with 1.36 blocks per set, which also ranks 20th nationally. Toone finished second in conference play with 1.58 blocks per set.
With a hitting percentage of .394, Toone has a chance to break her own single-season record of .396 set in 2006 and would become Utah's career record holder at .345 (809-213-1736=.343). Turner hit .326 in her career from 2000 to 2003. Toone is second in school history with 613 career total blocks and is tied for second with Baird at 561 block assists. She remains 57 total blocks behind Turner, Utah's all-time leader with 670. Toone is 28 block assists shy of tying Turner's mark of 589 career block assists.
"We have two of the best middle blockers in the conference [in Toone and Baird]," Launiere said. "I'm excited that coaches around the league realized that. [Toone] has a great hitting percentage and finished No. 1 in the conference so that speaks to her ability. We were able to depend on her night in and night out throughout the entire season."
Bartkowiak, an Aurora, Ill., native, joined Haynie as a first-time all-conference selection and was the Utes' lone underclassman honored. The sophomore led or tied for the team lead in kills twice this season and was also the team leader in blocks on two occasions. Bartkowiak was solid on the attack and at the net this season with 2.02 kills per set to go along with a 0.76 blocks per set. She finished fourth in conference play with a .356 hitting percentage. Bartkowiak had six kills on seven swings in the fourth set alone in Utah's home win against BYU on Nov. 14. She hit for a career-high percentage of .769 with 10 kills on 13 attempts and no errors against Houston in the New Mexcio State Tournament.
"[Bartkowiak] really came through for us in crunch time the entire season," Launiere said. "Both [Bartkowiak] and Chelsey Sandberg were the keys to our success this season, because everyone focused their game plans on our seniors [Baird, Haynie, and Toone] and they were able to take advantage of the opportunities give to them."
Utah head coach Beth Launiere earned the MWC Coach of the Year honor for the third time in her career after leading Utah to its third regular-season MWC championship in school history. After losing the first two matches of their conference season, the Utes won the next 14 consecutive MWC contests to take the title. Launiere now has 13 career 20-win seasons and now owns a 126-32 (.797) record through 10 years of MWC play.
No. 21 Utah concludes its regular season with a pair of non-conference road matches at the 30th annual Pacific Community Bankers Classic in Stockton, Calif. The Utes face Nevada Friday at 6 p.m. MT. The tournament's consolation match will be played Saturday at 6 p.m. MT, followed by the championship match at 8 p.m. MT.
The Utes will learn their postseason destination during the NCAA Tournament Selection Show, which will air on ESPNU Sunday at 8 p.m. MT.
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
OH/MB
/ VolleyballCrimson Corner with Bill Riley - Keith Kelley, voice of the Wyoming Cowboys
Tuesday, September 09
Utah Volleyball's Kamryn Gibadlo - ESPN+ Feature
Tuesday, September 09
Crimson Corner with Bill Riley - Ron McBride
Wednesday, September 03
Utah Volleyball's Head Coach Beth Launiere begins her 36th season at the helm! - ESPN+ Feature
Saturday, August 30