WICHITA, Kan. – The AVCA North Region Committee announced Tuesday that Wichita State middle blocker Natalie Foster has been named All-Region and setter Izzi Strand has been named Honorable Mention All-Region.

This marks the second consecutive All-Region honor for Foster, who has helped power Wichita State into the Great 8 of the NIVC with a torrid final month of the season. Foster’s season hitting percentage has jumped to .410, tops in the conference and 13th nationally. Dating back to the end of the Shockers match at Rice, Foster has 30 kills and just one attack error over her last 46 attempts, good for a .630 hitting percentage in that time frame. Recently named First Team All-American Athletic Conference, Foster is the first Wichita State player to hit .400 in a season since Abbie Lehman in 2017. Foster ranks second on the team in points per set (3.39) and kills per set (2.78) while leading the club in blocks per set (0.96), already establishing a new career high with 114.0 total rejections.

The native of Mattawan, Michigan has delivered consecutive errorless matches in the opening two rounds of the NIVC against Arkansas State and Tulsa, logging eight kills and four blocks in each outing. Foster was a dominant force in conference play, firing 212 kills on 407 swings for an impressive .521 kill percentage. That number includes a career-best .800 hitting percentage in the UTSA contest on November 11 when she scored 12 times on 15 attempts. Foster delivered a season-high 17 kills in the second meeting against Rice on November 18 and has notched at least six kills in every match this season. For her career, Foster owns 50 matches with double-digit kills and a combined hitting percentage of .373.

Strand continues to orchestrate Wichita State’s powerful offense, helping the Shockers to a team .251 hitting percentage that ranks top-50 nationally. The UC San Diego transfer is 19th in the country with 1,234 assists, easily tops in the conference and just 44 away from breaking into the Wichita State single-season top-10 list. Her 10.37 assists per set are second in the conference and 39th nationally, buoyed by a new career high with 60 assists in a road win at Tulane on October 13 and at least 50 helpers on three other occasions. When calling her own number, Strand racked up 94 kills at a .203 clip, highlighted by eight terminations in the season opener against Notre Dame.

The native of Carlsbad, California serves as a reliable cog in the Shockers excellent defensive unit, contributing 2.50 digs per set and 0.35 blocks per set. She established a new season high with 17 digs in Wichita State’s NIVC victory over Tulsa and piled up six blocks in Wichita State’s road win over Illinois on September 1. Strand’s all-around efforts garnered her a Second Team All-Conference nod in the conference awards announced in late November.

Foster, Strand and the Shockers continue their postseason run on Wednesday night against Drake. First serve from Charles Koch Arena is scheduled for 6:30 pm.