Rio's Bedoya, Khan, Morales earn RSC honors

Rio Grande/RSC Sports Information
     MIDDLETOWN, Ohio - Two members of the University of Rio Grande men's volleyball program were among those named to the 2025 All-River States Conference Team on Thursday.
     Senior opposite side hitter Daniel Bedoya (Acacias, Colombia) and freshman libero Maaz Khan (Peshawar, Pakistan) both earned First Team honors, while Khan was also named the league's Defender of the Year.
     Bedoya led the RedStorm and ranked second nationally with 441 kills, while ranking fifth nationally in kills per set with 4.16.
     Khan logged 435 digs - a total that leads the nation and is one of only two players in NAIA volleyball with more than 400 digs. He also leads the nation with 4.03 digs per set - the only player in the nation to average more than four digs per set.
     Joining Bedoya and Khan on the All-RSC First Team were Georgetown College's Miguel Ariza Vega, Finn Heinemann and Adam Szewinski; Campbellsville University's Ayoube Hamadache and Alonzo Vega; and Cumberland University's Joao Infante and Jacob Whyte.
     Heinemann was named both Player and Setter of the Year honors. The senior currently leads the River States Conference with 10.42 assists per set, a total that ranks fourth in the nation.
     Heinemann is the only player in the nation to log more than 10 digs per set and account for more than 110 points on the season, a total made possible by his 52 service aces (which ranks seventh in the nation), 43 kills, and 28 blocks.
     Infante was honored by the league as the Attacker of the Year. After coming in from Park University, he exploded onto the scene as one of the nation's top attackers.
     Heading into the upcoming NAIA National Championship, the junior leads the nation with 467 kills and is one of only two players - Bedoya being the other - to exceed more than 400 kills. He has logged 20 or more kills in six matches this season, including in three of Cumberland's last four matches.
     The award for the top freshman in the conference was given to Georgetown's Kristjan Unt. A native of Tartu, Estonia, Unt averaged nearly three kills per set for the Tigers, hitting at a .229 clip.
     Unt came on strong in the final weeks of the regular season, and has recorded at least 10 kills in each of Georgetown's last six matches, all Tiger wins.
     The head Tiger at Georgetown College, Jack Stark, was honored as the league's Coach of the Year. Stark took over the Georgetown program in July, and was tasked with keeping the program at its national championship level.
     The Tigers logged a 21-4 regular season record, including a 15-1 conference mark that earned Georgetown the RSC regular season title. Georgetown is ranked 11th in the nation, winners of nine straight matches.
     The award for the top assistant coach in the league went to Rio Grande's Andres Morales. A native of Quibdo-Choco, Columbia, Morales is in his first season as a member of the RedStorm coaching staff.
     With Morales on the bench, the RedStorm went 8-8 in conference play (up from 3-7 in the Mid-South last season) and earned a home match in the RSC Tournament.
     The All-RSC Second Team was comprised of Unt, Michal Bak and Jose Acuna Yepes from Georgetown; Campbellsville's John-Marcos Gonzalez, Mason McKinney and Pedro Zavatini; Cumberland's Francesco Corradini; and Kristofers Klavins and Yammiel Martinez from St. Mary-of-the-Woods.
     Included on the All-RSC Third Team were Arthur Barreto of Indiana University East; Oakland City University's Gaston Barrionuevo, Tinevimbo Goto and Hazem Nabil; Christian Green and Joseph Szadorski of St. Mary-of-the-Woods; Campbellsville's Denzel Madrigal and Andrew Ovalle; and Robin Puss from Georgetown.