While aspiring to be “the freshman that doesn’t make the mistakes,” Lauren Wicinski helped the NIU volleyball team get to the MAC Championship match and garnered herself the Northern Star’s No. 2 Huskie of the Year.

The Geneva, Ill. native came to NIU as an All-American high school player and quickly became the leading outside hitter for the Huskies, though her main goal was to learn as much as she could about the game she loves.

“I think a lot of people knew that Lauren had potential of doing some special things,” said NIU head coach Ray Gooden. “For her to do it in her first season, as a freshman, has been nothing short of amazing.”

Wicinski’s performance earned her not only MAC Freshman of the Year but the conference’s highest accolade as MAC Player of the Year. Wicinski is the first freshman to accomplish the dual-win in the conference’s 30-year history.

Wicinski’s stat line supported her accolades as she finished near the top of the national rankings in three categories. She ended the season with per set averages of 5.63 points (5), 4.82 kills (6) and .54 aces (10).

Even with her personal achievements, the humble freshman said she would give it all up for what she believes is the most coveted prize.

“It’s not about the individual awards to me; it’s about the team,” Wicinski said. “The reason I wanted to come here was to win a MAC Championship, get to the NCAA Tournament [and] do well as a team. That’s our goal for next year. I would give all these [awards] away, everything, if we could get a ring on our finger.”