NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Saint Louis freshman Irmak Gokcen was named the Atlantic 10 Conference Volleyball Player of the Week Monday, while Loyola Chicago junior Kelsey Watson was chosen as Defensive Player of the Week. Fordham freshman Audrey Brown was named Rookie of the Week. The awards are for matches played from Oct. 24-30.
 
Gokcen propelled Saint Louis to a weekend sweep over Dayton, posting 4.00 kills, 2.63 digs, 0.88 and 0.38 aces per set, while also hitting for a .343 attack percentage in the two matches. The outside hitter from Bursa, Turkey, registered a career-best 17 kills in Friday’s four-set win over the Flyers on a .484 hitting percentage. With a career-best 12 digs, she also picked up the first double-double of her collegiate career. Gokcen continued her impressive play into Saturday’s match, again leading the Billikens with 15 kills in the four-set win over Dayton. She neared another double-double with nine digs, while also added five blocks.
 
Watson was a force on the defensive side, averaging 1.6 blocks per set, as the Ramblers ran their win streak to 14 matches following three victories this past week. In Tuesday's 3-1 win over Saint Louis, Watson racked up a career-high nine blocks to go along with four kills. The Ballwin, Mo., middle blocker added five rejections and four kills in a 3-0 sweep over VCU on Friday before ripping 12 kills in another blanking of the Rams on Saturday. Watson, who ranks third in the A-10 in overall hitting percentage (.333), sits fifth in the conference in blocks, averaging 1.15 blocks per set.
 
Brown continues to produce in a starring role for the Rams, helping them to a 1-1 weekend at Duquesne with back-to-back 19-kill efforts over seven total sets. The outside hitter from Birmingham, Mich., hit .317 on Friday with a pair of digs and a block, then hit an efficient .469 over three sets with a pair of blocks and a dig in a sweep of the Dukes. Brown is ninth in the A-10 with 2.85 kills per set and is just outside the top-10 in hit percentage (.279).