Following a 2-0 week for the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, freshman Marcellus Owens has been named the NEC men's volleyball Defensive Player of the Week.   

The freshman from Atlanta averaged 1.67 blocks per set as the Hawks improved to 4-0 with a sweep of Erskine College in Due West, South Carolina. Owens notched a career-best seven blocks in Thursday's 3-0 win to tie for match-high honors, then added three more the following the afternoon in another three-set victory. The freshman currently ranks third on the NEC circuit with 1.14 blocks per set. He also added seven kills (1.17 kills per set) and one assist. 

Throughout the remainder of the NEC, Manhattan's Kaen Owens was named Player of the Week. Owens starred for Manhattan in a split last week. The sophomore compiled a career-high four service aces in the win, which tied for the most aces in a three-set match in the NEC this season. He followed with a career and NEC single-match season-high 22 kills in a nip-and-tuck five-set setback at Sacred Heart the following evening. He recorded 3.63 kills and 4.38 points per set, while hitting a robust .367 on the week. 

LIU's Ike Vernon was named the NEC Rookie of the Week. The freshman posted 11 kills and five digs while hitting .320 in a 3-0 setback at No. 17 CSUN last Wednesday. One day later, he registered 11 more kills and added four digs in a three-set loss at No. 2 Long Beach State. Vernon averaged 3.67 kills and 1.50 digs per set on the week. 

Additionally, UMES junior Andre Mills joined Owens as an NEC Prime Performer. 

NEC PRIME PERFORMERS 

 Andre Mills, UMES (Jr., OPP) 
Mills continued to put up eye-popping numbers last week in a sweep at Erskine that pushes the Hawks' record to 4-0 in their inaugural campaign. He finished with 4.17 kills, 1.33 blocks and 5.0 points per set, while hitting .373. Mills leads the NEC with 1.43 blocks per set. 
 
Marcellus Owens, UMES (Fr., OH) 
Owens led all NEC competitors last week with 1.67 blocks per set as UMES moved to 4-0 with a pair of wins at Erskine. The freshman was named NEC Defensive Player of the Week. 

Patrick Mullen, DAE (R-So., RS) 
Mullen finished with 13 total kills (4.33 kills per set) and 15.0 total points (5.00 points per set) against NJIT on Saturday. 
 
Laydon Biro, FDU (So., OH) 
Biro tallied 3.63 kills, 3.94 points and 1.63 digs per set in a 1-1 week for the Knights. He finished with 16 kills and hit .500 vs. Roberts Wesleyan last Tuesday.  
 
Ike Vernon, LIU (Fr., OH/RS) 
The NEC Rookie of the Week put up 3.67 kills and 1.50 digs per game in LIU's west coast swing to play at No. 2 Long Beach State and No. 17 CSUN. He registered 11 kills in each match. 
 
Drew Blonski, MAN (Fr., S) 
Blonski registered 80 assists over two matches, a 10.0 per game clip, as the Jaspers split a pair of matches. His 56 assists in a five-set setback at Sacred Heart on Saturday is the highest single-game total this season in the NEC. 
 
Kasen Owens, MAN (So., OH) 
Owens, the NEC Player of the Week, averaged 3.63 kills and 4.38 points per set, while hitting .367 in Manhattan's two matches. He posted a career-high 22 kills at Sacred Heart on Saturday.