2026 men's volleyball players of the week

Men’s Volleyball Sweeps CCIW Weekly Awards

First sweep of awards in program history

3/30/2026 4:00:00 PM

NAPERVILLE, Ill. - The No. 20 Illinois Wesleyan University men's volleyball team continued its historic season with a sweep of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Player of the Week awards Monday, March 30. Sophomore Ethan Kuziela (Chicago, Ill.-Marist), junior Brenden Reutter (Frankfort, Ill.-Lincoln-Way East), and Gavin Rohlwing (Tower Lake, Ill.-Barrington) reeled in hitter, setter, and defensive player honors, respectively.

Overall, the trio pushes Illinois Wesleyan's total to 13 awards on the season. Kuziela, the CCIW Hitter of the Week, grabbed his sixth weekly honor of the year, with his previous five coming as CCIW Setter of the Week. Reutter registered the second weekly accolade of his career as the league's setter of the week, while Rohlwing's defensive recognition is his first of the season and fourth of his career. The Titans are the first program to reel in all three awards in a week since Carthage did so March 10, 2025.

The trio led the Green and White to a 2-0 week, March 25-28, that featured a sweep of 10th-ranked Loras College and a four-set comeback win at North Central College as IWU secured the first 20-win season in program history. Additionally, the Titans secured hosting rights for the CCIW Tournament Semifinals Wednesday, April 8, after previously securing a spot in the league tournament for the first time in program history.

For the week, Kuziela totaled 37 kills, an average of 5.29 per set on an impressive .431 attack percentage. He also added 32 assists, averaging 4.57 per set, 20 digs, an average of 2.86 per set, and 12 blocks, averaging 1.21 per set, along with three aces to stuff his stat line full. Opening the week with a sweep of the Duhawks Wednesday night, March 25, Kuziela was dominant with 14 kills on a .481 clip, 12 assists, two aces, seven digs, and five blocks. He followed with his fifth triple-double of the year, as he led the Green and White past NCC in four sets Saturday, March 28. Kuziela finished the match with 23 kills, tying his career-high, on a .400 attack percentage, 20 assists, 13 digs, a career-best seven blocks, and an ace.

Reutter, who became the second Titan in program history to eclipse 1000 career assists, turned in a tremendous week for the Green and White. Reutter totaled 53 assists, averaging 7.57 per set, eight digs, an average of 1.14 per set, and four aces, averaging 0.57 per set. Opening the week with a sweep of the Duhawks, Reutter quickly tallied his 1000th career helper and went on to finish the match with 20 assists, four digs, two aces, and helped IWU hit a scorching .423 as a team. He followed with a career-high 33 assists, four digs, and two aces in the four-set win over NCC, March 28.

Rounding out the sweep, Rohlwing led a defense that limited opponents to a .176 attack percentage, as he dominated at the net with 15 blocks, an impressive average of 2.14 per set. He turned in 16 kills, averaging 2.29 per set on a dominant .560 clip. He also chipped in three assists, three aces, and three blocks. Opening the week with a sweep of Loras, Rohlwing recorded six kills on nine swings without committing an error, good for a .667 attack percentage, along with six blocks, two aces, and a pair digs. He followed with 10 kills on a .500 showing, a career-high tying nine blocks, three assists, an ace, and a dig in the four-set defeat of the Cardinals.

Illinois Wesleyan heads to North Park University for a midweek match Wednesday night, April 1. First serve is set for 7 p.m.

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