Wayne State College senior middle hitter Taya Beller received one more honor Tuesday morning to cap an illustrious career with Wildcat volleyball as she was named to the College Sports Communicators 2024 Academic All-America Volleyball Team, receiving Second Team honors.  She becomes the first player in program history on being a three-time Academic All-American as Beller collected First Team honors last year and Third Team accolades in 2022 as a sophomore to go with her Second Team honor this season.    
            Beller, a 6-2 middle hitter from Lindsay (Humphrey HS), maintained a 3.74 grade point average earning a master's degree in business management.  On the court, she was named AVCA and D2CCA All-American for a third straight season this year while also named All-NSIC First Team for a fourth consecutive year.
            This season, Beller led Wayne State in most offensive categories ranking second in the NSIC in kills per set (3.51), blocks (1.29) and points per set (4.52) and third in hitting percentage (.349).  She had 24 matches with 10 or more kills, highlighted by a career-best 28 kills at Winona State (10/8/24).  Beller also recorded at least two blocks in all but one match this season.
            Beller ends her Wayne State career as a three-time AVCA First Team All-America and All-Central Region selection, was named AVCA Central Region Player of the Year as a sophomore in 2022 to go with NSIC Offensive Player of the Year honors.   She finished her Wildcat career ranking fourth on the all-time kills list with 1,545 and second in career hitting percentage at .369.
            Wayne State ended the 2024 season with a record of 23-7 overall and third place in the NSIC with a 14-4 league mark.  The Wildcats were ranked 19^th in the AVCA/TARAFLEX Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll.