Nansemond-Suffolk Academy received several key honors as all-conference selections were announced in several sports for the Tidewater Conference of Independent Schools. The most notable was in girls’ volleyball, where junior middle hitter Kaylor Nash was named Player of the Year.

Nash had been eyeing the Player of the Year title since last year, but she was a sophomore then on a team with equally strong junior and senior players. After working hard over the summer, she saw her clear chance this year.

“We sit down and tell everybody our goals at the beginning of the year, and that was my goal,” she said. “I told them I wanted to get Player of the Year. That’s my ultimate goal for this year, and it was great when it happened.”

During the regular season, Nash tallied 355 kills, 305 digs, 89 aces, and 39 blocks.

Her teammate, senior setter Quinby Hines, was named first-team all-conference along with Nash. Hitters generally dominate the first-team selections each year, which only adds to the impressive nature of Hines’ accomplishment.

“I was really excited,” she said. “Kaylor’s goal was Player of the Year, so my goal was first team.”

“It was well-deserved for both of them,” NSA volleyball coach Robyn Ross said. “This is the first time Quinby’s ever made an all-conference team, and it’s really hard to get setters noticed, and she actually leads all the setters in Virginia right now.”

Hines has the highest assists-per-game average among all Virginia schools, public and private. She piled up 849 assists, 186 digs, 56 aces, and 38 kills during the regular season.

Senior forward Julia Rapoport and senior goalie Tori Lauder were named to the first and second all-conference teams, respectively, for field hockey.

Rapoport had seven goals this season and was a valuable presence on the field for the Lady Saints.

“She has used her skill and experience to keep composure with the ball and create passing (and) scoring opportunities,” NSA field hockey coach Ashley Skinner stated.

“It’s really nice. I was not expecting it at all,” Rapoport said. “I’ve always been just part of the team ever since I started playing here, so I wasn’t expecting any special honor. Everybody plays just as hard, equally, so it’s really nice.”

Lauder had a total of 213 saves this season.

“This is a very impressive number, considering this is only Tori’s second year as a goalie,” Skinner stated. “This truly shows her dedication and work ethic.”

“I’ve been working towards it all season,” Lauder said of the TCIS honor. “I still can’t believe that I got it.”

In girls’ cross country, senior Katelyn McCracken placed second at the TCIS meet this past week with a school record and personal best time of 19:01. By virtue of finishing in the top 15 at this event, she was named to the all-conference team. There is only one team selected in cross country.

Sophomore Maya Venkataraman also finished in the top 15 in the meet to earn the all-conference honor. Senior Marc Leber finished fourth in the boys’ cross country TCIS meet to earn the same honor.