PORTLAND, Ore. – Jessa Long, the libero for the Alaska Nanooks volleyball team, was named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Monday, Aug. 22. This honor was Long's first in the blue and gold and is the first the GNAC has handed out in the 2022 season.

Alaska opened the 2022 season with their best start since the 2017 season, starting 3-0. They opened the season with a sweep of Hawaii Hilo on Aug. 19, using 33 team kills and a .195 hit percentage to put away the Vulcans with ease. They added 12 blocks and 39 digs on the defensive end. They used that momentum into their first matchup with Chaminade that ended in a five-set win behind 51 assists, 67 digs and 13 service-aces. They then opened Aug. 20 by sweeping Hawaii Pacific on a .293 team hit percentage, 42 kills, 36 assists and nine aces. Their run ended that night against Chaminade as the Swords got their revenge, defeating the Nanooks 1-3. 

Long's backrow ability was put on full-show this past weekend as the graduate-transfer posted 59 digs in four games, helping lead the Nanooks to a 3-1 record to start the 2022 season. Her best performance came in the Nanooks' 3-2, five-set win over Chaminade on Aug. 19, 2022 when she posted 20 digs and 18 receptions. Alongside her 20 and 18, Long added a season-high six assists and one service-ace. This helped push the Nanooks past the Swords of Chaminade for the first time in nearly 13 full years. Their last win against CUH came on Sept. 10, 2009 at Chaminade, a 3-1 victory. She posted 11 digs in the Nanooks' sweep of Hawaii Hilo, 10 in their sweep of Hawaii Pacific and added 18 in four sets in their loss to CUH on Aug. 20.

Head coach Brian Scott was excited about Long's immediate help after joining the Nanooks this offseason, "We are excited for Jessa and her teammates! Jessa had a copule great matches and was instrumental in our defense over the weekend. We're glad to have her as part of our Nanook family."
 
Following the opening weekend, Long has played in all 15 sets, tallying 15 total assists for an average of 1.00 assists per set, 66 receptions with a .909 reception percentage and 59 digs for 3.93 digs per set. 

The Nanooks return to their home-state of Alaska for the Seawolf Volleyball Invitational next weekend before opening up at home on Sept. 1 in the Denali State Bank Ice Block Classic. 

For more information on the Alaska Nanooks volleyball team, follow @NanooksVB on Instagram or Twitter, or like the Alaska Nanooks Volleyball team page on Facebook.