IRVINE, Calif.—A pair of University of Hawai'i women's volleyball players earned Big West weekly awards on Monday. Junior Amber Igiede was named Big West Offensive Player of the Week and Caylen Alexander earned her fifth BW Freshman of the Week award of the season. For Igiede, this is her second career Offensive Player of the Week honor (11-15-21) and fifth overall weekly conference recognition. Igiede picked up a BW Freshman of the Week award on Nov. 25, 2019 and twice was tabbed BW Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 15, 2021 and earlier this season on Sept. 5.

Igiede led Hawai'i to a pair of road wins as the Rainbow Wahine remained atop the conference standings. UH's middle blocker put down a combined 35 kills, a .456 (35-9-57) hitting percentage and 15 total blocks at UC Riverside and UC Davis. For the week, Igiede averaged 5.63 points, 4.38 kills and 1.88 blocks per set, and collected five digs with an ace. 

In Hawai'i's sweep at UC Riverside on Thursday, the Baton Rouge, La. native put down a match-high 11 kills while attacking at a .500 (11-1-20) rate with just one attack error. Defensively, Igiede also led all players with eight blocks—including three block solos which tied her career-high. 

At UC Davis on Saturday, Igiede pounded a career-high 24 kills on .432 (24-8-37) hitting, and was in on seven more blocks to share the match high. Igiede extended her double-digit kill streak to 18 contests, and has now recorded at least two blocks in 19 straight matches. 

Rookie Alexander recorded a combined 23 kills, four digs, two service aces and two blocks to help propel UH to their two road wins last week. In UH's five-set battle at UC Davis, Alexander tied her career-high with 18 kills, hitting .385 (18-3-39)  while recording her 11th double-digit kill match of the season.

The product of Alpharetta, Ga., and Centennial High School began the week with five kills, two aces and her first collegiate solo block for 8.0 total points in a Thursday sweep in Riverside. Alexander attacked at a .314 (23-7-51) clip over the two matches. She has appeared in all of UH's 20 matches and continues to lead the squad with 23 service aces overall.
 
No other Big West rookie has more than two Freshman of the Week awards in 2022. Alexander ties former Rainbow Wahine Hanna Hellvig who also earned five BW Freshman of the Week awards in 2019. Those two Rainbow Wahine have earned that honor more than any other UH player since the award was created in 2015 by The Big West.