Lloyd, Kojima Earn Player of the Week Honors
Published on April 13, 2026 under League One Volleyball (LOVB) News Release
LOS ANGELES, Calif. - After successfully leading their teams to the LOVB Championship last weekend, Carli Lloyd and Manami Kojima have earned LOVB Player of the Week honors.
Offensive Player of the Week: Carli Lloyd, Setter, LOVB Austin
Lloyd set Austin to the league's best offensive numbers during the LOVB Playoffs en route to a series win over LOVB Atlanta. Across two matches and the golden set, Austin hit .359 as a team - .390 off Lloyd specifically - while the Bonsall, California, native racked up 91 assists, five kills and two blocks. Under Lloyd's guidance, Austin earned the right to defend their LOVB title this weekend at the LOVB Championship in Long Beach, California.
A 2016 Olympic medalist, Lloyd played in 57 sets this year and started four matches, including all three during Austin's three-match win streak to clinch a postseason berth. She tallied 338 assists with a .264 attack efficiency while scoring 25 points herself.
This is Austin's third consecutive Player of the Week honor: Kotoe Inoue won Defensive Player of the Week on March 30 while Madisen Skinner was Offensive Player of the Week April 6.
Defensive Player of the Week: Manami Kojima, Libero, LOVB Salt Lake
Freshly re-crowned Libero of the Year, Kojima proved her worthiness of title by stymieing the prolific Houston attack over the weekend to power Salt Lake into the LOVB Championship. She made 38 digs (4.22 per set) on a .864 dig percentage, and Salt Lake attackers put a swing on 75% of those digs. With Kojima patrolling the back row, Salt Lake downed Houston in a golden set and will compete for their first league title.
The only Salt Lake athlete to play every set of the regular season, Kojima finished with a league-record 256 digs. She also ranked second in good pass percentage (.631), pass efficiency (2.73) and digs per set (3.46).
This is the Miyagi, Japan, native's third Player of the Week award this season and fifth in her LOVB career. Both marks match LOVB Houston opposite Jordan Thompson's totals for the league lead.
Lloyd, Kojima and their respective teams will square off for the league title this weekend. The first match of the two-match series begins at 8 p.m. Eastern/5 p.m. Pacific on Thursday, April 16, at the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid in Long Beach, California.
Previous Player of the Week Award Winners
Offensive Player of the Week
April 6: Madisen Skinner, Opposite Hitter, LOVB Austin
March 30: Anne Buijs, Outside Hitter, LOVB Nebraska
March 23: McKenzie Adams, Outside Hitter, LOVB Atlanta
March 16: Claire Hoffman, Outside Hitter, LOVB Salt Lake
March 9: Jordan Thompson, Opposite Hitter, LOVB Houston
March 2: Anne Buijs, Outside Hitter, LOVB Nebraska
February 25: Jordan Thompson, Opposite Hitter, LOVB Houston
February 16: Onye Ofoegbu, Middle Blocker, LOVB Atlanta
February 9: Serena Gray, Middle Blocker, LOVB Salt Lake
February 2: Jordan Thompson, Opposite Hitter, LOVB Houston
January 26: Jordyn Poulter, Setter, LOVB Salt Lake
January 19: Callie Schwarzenbach, Middle Blocker, LOVB Madison
January 12: Serena Gray, Middle Blocker, LOVB Salt Lake
Defensive Player of the Week
April 6: Manami Kojima, Libero, LOVB Salt Lake
March 30: Kotoe Inoue, Libero, LOVB Austin
March 23: Magdalena Jehlárová, Middle Blocker, LOVB Atlanta
March 16: Gong Xiangyu, Opposite Hitter, LOVB Madison
March 9: Lauren Carlini, Setter, LOVB Madison
March 2: Piyanut Pannoy, Libero, LOVB Atlanta
February 25: Lauren Carlini, Setter, LOVB Madison
February 16: Lauren Briseño, Libero, LOVB Houston
February 9: Manami Kojima, LIbero, LOVB Salt Lake
February 2: Ana Carolina da Silva, Middle Blocker, LOVB Nebraska
January 26: Jordyn Poulter, Setter, LOVB Salt Lake
January 19: Gong Xiangyu, Opposite Hitter, LOVB Madison
January 12: Kotoe Inoue, Libero, LOVB Austin
League One Volleyball Stories from April 13, 2026
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