Charlotte Volleyball’s Annika Thompson, Kristen Birmingham, And Jessica Ricks Awarded Postseason Honors
Annika Thompson, Kristen Birmingham, and Jessica Ricks of Charlotte Volleyball earned postseason awards from the American Conference, announced by the league office on Thursday. Thompson was named the American Libero of the Year while being named to the First Team All-Conference alongside Birmingham and Ricks. Three players named to the first team was the most of any team in the conference.
ANNIKA THOMPSON
Thompson led the conference with 501 total digs throughout the season (5.01 per set) and 277 within conference play (4.86 per set) on her way to earning Defensive Player of the Week recognition four times and an Honorable Mention once. She had the two best individual highs for digs in a match with 30 in a five-set thriller over Florida Atlantic, and 29 in four sets versus Tulane. Nationally, she is 14th averaging 5.01 digs per set and 24th with her 501 total digs. Earlier this season, she reached the 1,000 career digs milestone highlighted by nine matches recording 20+ digs.
KRISTEN BIRMINGHAM
Birmingham led the 49ers with 401 kills this season, averaging 4.05 per set on a .309 hitting percentage. Within conference play, she was sixth in the American with 212 kills (3.79 per set) and seventh with 241.5 points. She recorded 12 double doubles during the season highlighted by 28 kills and 11 digs in a win over UNC Greensboro, the second most kills in a game for an American player in the season. That performance earned her conference Offensive Player of the Week honors while being tabbed to the Honorable Mention list four times.
JESSICA RICKS
Ricks ended the season on a high note, notching 16 kills and 13 digs on senior day versus UAB on an efficient .419 hitting percentage. Throughout the season she recorded 11 double doubles while turning in two outstanding performances versus Florida Atlantic, recording 20 kills and 17 digs, and 15 kills and 18 digs in the two matches, her two highest dig totals this season. She was second on the team with 356 kills averaging 3.56 per set, including 212 kills and 3.72 kills per set within conference play to rank seventh in the league.
NEXT UP
Charlotte clinched a spot in the American Conference tournament with a sweep over the Memphis Tigers on Friday (Nov. 14) inside Halton Arena. Since joining the American in 2023-24, this will be Charlotte’s first appearance in the conference tournament and first time in the postseason since 2022 as members of Conference USA.
The 49ers will be the seventh seed in the conference tournament, facing the second seeded and host South Florida on Friday at 5:00 p.m. The Bulls swept the season series over the 49ers, winning 3-0 at home and 3-1 inside Halton Arena.
The American Volleyball Championship will feature the top eight teams in a single elimination tournament at The Corral in Tampa, Fla. The first round will be played on Friday, November 21, with the semifinals on Saturday, November 22 and the championship match on Sunday, November 23 at 1 p.m. ET/noon central. All matches will be streamed live on ESPN+. The tournament champion will earn the league’s automatic bid to the 2025 NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship.