Dyer Named First-Team All-American in Volleyball

Averi Dyer
Averi Dyer

Bellevue College sophomore Averi Dyer was named a first-team Two-Year College All-American by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.

Dyer, an outside hitter, helped the Bulldogs to the NWAC North Region title and a second-place finish in the 2017 NWAC Championships. The AVCA All-America teams were announced Dec. 8.

Dyer was just one of three returning sophomores who helped the inexperienced Bulldogs mature into a team that finished 38-14 in 2017.

“She got better at leading with words, but she was definitely always a leader on the court just with her actions, her talent, her ability – and her fight to never give up for her team,” said Bellevue College coach Jocelyn Lawrence.

Dyer, who played at Kalama High School in Kalama, Wash., also was the NWAC North Region Most Valuable Player. She led the NWAC in service aces per set and was sixth in kills.

Dyer said the Bulldogs bouncing back to complete the regional title run after a late-season conference loss helped them at the NWAC championships. BC dropped its second match of the tournament, but then reeled off five consecutive victories – including four straight on Saturday – to advance to the final.

Averi Dyer
Averi Dyer

“The way we played at NWACs was we did not look past our next game,” Dyer said. “No matter what happened, preparing for all week NWACs, we did not talk about a single thing except our next game. We did the same thing on Saturday, we were just going to do it game by game.”

In the final, BC held a 2-1 lead before losing 3-2 to top-ranked Chemeketa, which had not lost a match since mid-September.

“It worked out really well,” Dyer said of the team’s development. “Everyone’s personality, when we played on the court it wasn’t like individual players. We just became completely connected. It was a really good year.”

As a freshman, Dyer was a second-team all-region pick and helped the Bulldogs to the North Region title. She then broke her hand in the first match at the NWAC championships, where BC battled back to finish seventh after an opening loss.

“She put in a lot of hard work and fought back from her injury at NWAC last year to have the season that she did this year,” Lawrence said. “She’s extremely deserving. She has the talent and the character for an All-American.”

Dyer completed her associate degree at Bellevue College in the 2017 fall quarter. She is considering her both her academic and athletic options.

“Jocelyn’s really big on academics,” said Dyer, who began her college academic path as a Running Start student near her hometown. “It’s for sure that you’re a student first.”

Last Updated December 14, 2017