BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – Southeast Missouri Volleyball received multiple postseason awards from the Ohio Valley Conference Pre-Tournament banquet in Charleston, Ill. on Sunday night. Freshman Lucy Arndt was named the Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Year, Libero Tara Beilsmith was tabbed the OVC Defensive Player of the Year, and seniors Marisa Guisti & Izzy Lukens were named to the All-OVC Second Team, the league announced Sunday evening. 
 
Arndt and Beilsmith were also both selected to the 2023 All-OVC First Team because of their conference awards. 
 
Tara finished the regular season ranked fourth all-time in NCAA history for career digs with 2,950 and trails third place all time by just three digs. This past weekend, Beilsmith finished the pair of matches with 77 digs overall. 
 
This season, Beilsmith has been selected as the OVC Defensive Player of the Week five separate times. She finished the regular season with 712 digs and a .953 reception percentage over 506 total attempts with just 24 errors. 
 
Tara recorded three games of 40+ digs including the season-finale against Lindenwood (40), 48 against Western Illinois (11/4), and finished with 44 at SIUE (9/30). She averaged 6.36 digs-per-set over the regular season. She had a staggering 13-games with a flawless reception percentage of 1.000. 
 
The Defensive Player of the Year award marks back-to-back seasons for Tara Beilsmith garnering the award and is the second-straight All-OVC First Team selection. 
 
Freshman Lucy Arndt is the first Redhawk freshman since Emily Scannell in 2000 to win the Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Year award. Arndt was also a First Team All-OVC selection for the first time in her career.
 
Arndt landed on the OVC Player of the Week list seven different times during 2023 in either Freshman or Player of the Week fashion. 
 
She finished the year with 402 kills on 1,148 total attacks, registering just 137 errors, for an overall hitting-percentage of .231. She recorded a career-high 34 kills against Western Illinois on November 3 in a five-set Redhawks victory. 
 
The Freeport, Ill.-native averaged 3.59 kills-per-set over all 112 sets in the regular season, starting in every single set for SEMO. She averaged 4.12 points-per-set. 
 
The outside hitter played well on the defensive side of the net as well finishing with 297 digs and a .950 reception percentage. 
 
Middle blocker Marisa Guisti and setter Izzy Lukens landed on the All-OVC Second Team list for their 2023 season. 
 
A transfer from Butler University, Guisit made a big impact in her lone season with the Redhawks, starting and playing in all 112 sets in 2023. She finished the season with 301 kills on 690 attacks, with just 59 errors, for a season hitting-percentage of .351. 
 
She recorded a SEMO career high 27 kills against Tennessee State (10/13) and recorded 20+ kills in two more games during the season. She averaged 3.24 points-per-set. 
 
From her middle blocker position, Guisti finished with 94 total blocks, 29 solos and 65 block assists, a team high. She averaged 0.84 blocks-per-set. 
 
Izzy Lukens was selected five different times for OVC Setter of the Week during the 2023 season. The setter from Omaha, Neb. Dished out 1,086 assists in 2023 on 2,873 attempts for a .378 setting-percentage. 
 
She finished second in the conference in assists while averaging 10.25 assists-per-set for the entire year. 
 
Lukens set a new career-high 69 assists against Western Illinois on November 3 and finished with four different games of 50+ assists. 
 
Offensively, Izzy chipped in 66 kills on 245 attacks, with just 21 errors, for a .184 attack percentage. 
 
Southeast Missouri Volleyball will begin the 2023 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament on Monday, Nov. 20, when they take on Western Illinois. First serve is slated for 4 p.m. at Lantz Arena in Charleston, Ill.