LEXINGTON, Ky.— Colorado Mesa University beach volleyball players Sabrina VanDeList and Tye Wedhorn received the American Volleyball Coaches Association's Top Flight Award, it was announced by the organization on Thursday morning.
 
They are the first Maverick duo to have ever received the award, first handed out in 2018, in and comes after they helped the Mavericks to a AVCA NCAA Division II Small College National Championship in Tavares, Florida.
 
In order for a pair to be eligible for the award, two athletes must compete in at least 15 matches together and at a specific flight number. Should that pair win at least 75 percent of their matches – regardless of the overall result of the dual – those athletes will achieve "Top Flight" status.
 
VanDeList, a sophomore from Severance, Colorado, and Wedhorn, a redshirt junior from Glenwood Springs, Colorado, went 15-5 together in the fifth flight this season. 
 
They were also named as AVCA/College Beach Volleyball (CBVB) Pair of the Week after going 5-0 during the national tournament.
 
They were the only Division II duo to receive the Top Flight honor at No. 5 and one of just five Division II partnerships overall to be recognized.
 
"The Top Flight awards program is designed to recognize excellence in collegiate beach volleyball from all over the country and across all flights. The nature of Beach Volleyball dictates that each player fills an important role on the team - each pair must give their greatest effort to help the squad clinch the three wins necessary to defeat the opponent. It takes all ten athletes performing at a high level to achieve greatness," the AVCA said in a statement.
 
"With this in mind, the AVCA created this award to reward the hard work and consistent play of pairs at every flight."