Spartanburg, S.C. – Western Carolina junior setter Katie Boney today collected her third Southern Conference Setter of the Week honor following back-to-back double-double efforts to open Southern Conference play, highlighted by a 36-assist, 15-dig showing in a straight-set victory over The Citadel in Charleston last Friday.
Boney collected back-to-back weekly plaudits from the league office earlier this month. She is the first Catamount to garner three or more weekly honors from the league since the spring 2021 season, when Destinee Dorsey received three honors during the COVID spring season. Boney is now the first Catamount to garner weekly setter plaudits three times in a single season, as the league started that award during the 2019 season.
Boney's third weekly honor comes after leading the SoCon in assists per set at 9.67, dishing out a total of 58 helpers over six sets, and finishing second in the league in total assists for the opening weekend of league action. The Brookhaven, Ga. native was one of three players to average more than nine assists per set last week, adding to her league-high 459 over 13 seasonal matches. She also picked up a team-high 25 digs, while chipping in six kills, along with an ace and a solo block in road matchups against Wofford and The Citadel.
Opening the week and SoCon play with a bang, Boney tallied 27 of her 36 helpers over the final two sets in a straight-set sweep of The Citadel to open league play on Friday. It marked the seventh consecutive season WCU has begun conference action with a victory. In the third set, Boney passed out 13 assists as WCU strung together a strong finish with a .378 hitting percentage, tallying 19 kills and just two errors to secure the sweep.
On Saturday, Boney started fast with three kills in the opening set while also tallying eight of her 22 assists in a setback to preseason favorite Wofford. She closed the final set of the match with seven assists and six digs to secure her sixth double-double of the season with 22 helpers and 10 digs.
This season, Boney ranks atop the SoCon with 459 assists (47th nationally) and is 30th in the NCAA with 9.98 assists per set mark through the opening weekend of SoCon play. She is 32 assists clear of the second-place setter in the conference, making her one of two players in the league to eclipse 400 assists on the season.
Western Carolina (5-8, 1-1 SoCon) begins its 2025 SoCon home schedule with a visit from mountain-rival ETSU on Friday, Oct. 3, before welcoming in-state foe UNCG the following evening. Friday's match with the Bucs is slated for a 6 p.m. start, followed by a 5 p.m. first serve against UNCG on Saturday.
Friday's meeting with mountain-rival ETSU is part of the "Beat the Bucs" Blackout, with fans encouraged to wear their black WCU gear to the game. Saturday's action with the Spartans will be Kids at the Court & Neon Night. Both matches with the Bucs and the Spartans are scheduled for ESPN+ (a paid subscription is required), and both contests will feature live stats available on CatamountSports.com.
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