BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Loyola University Maryland's Ashley Dwyer was named the Patriot League Volleyball Scholar-Athlete of the Year, honoring her success on the court and in the classroom.
 
She also earned a spot on the Patriot League All-Academic Team, joining graduate student libero Katie Forsythe.
 
Dwyer, a senior setter from Medina, Ohio, is a physics major with an environmental engineering focus while carrying a minor in environmental and sustainability studies. She is the third Loyola student-athlete to earn a Patriot League sport's Scholar-Athlete of the Year this fall, joining women's soccer's Paige Sim and men's soccer's Albert Kang.
 
She took over as the Greyhounds' six-rotation setter near the beginning of Patriot League play and has thrived in the role. During the 15 matches she has been the lone setter, including Tuesday night's Patriot League Quarterfinal win over Bucknell, Dwyer has averaged 11.22 assists per set, a figure that would lead the Patriot League. The 11.22 assists per set would rank ninth in NCAA Division I.
 
Dwyer posted 40 or more assists in 10 of the 15 contests, with 50 at Navy and 53 at Lafayette.
 
In the classroom, Dwyer is a six-time Dean's List honoree and has been named to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll three times. She has been a part of the CPaMS Scholars Program, a a community for academically talented students majoring in Computer Science, Mathematics, Statistics, Data Science, or Physics. She also has participated in the Haig Scholars Program for academic excellence and leadership.
 
Dwyer has been a math and physics peer tutor and a physics teaching assistant. Last summer, she had a research fellowship at the University of Hawai'i, working to analyze and interpret the isotopic composition of rainfall in the Pacific Ocean to determine unique factors which could help better understand precipitation patters in the tropics.
 
Forsythe gradated in May 2022 with a bachelor's degree in elementary education, and she returned for her fifth year to obtain her postgraduate certificate for teaching English Language Learners.
 
She was an eight-time Dean's List honoree as an undergraduate and was named to the Patriot League Honor Roll four times. This year's Patriot League All-Academic honor is the third of her career after she received the recognition in 2020 and 2021.
 
Forsythe, who will start her teaching career in special education after the volleyball season is completed, will leave as the most decorated defensive player in Patriot League volleyball history. Earlier this week, she was named the conference's Libero of the Year for the fifth-straight season, marking the first time a League student-athlete has earned a postseason major award five times.
 
She is a five-time All-Patriot League honoree, and on Tuesday night, she moved into ninth all-time in NCAA history in career digs with 2,707. She holds the Patriot League and Loyola career, season and single-game records and has ranked in the top-eight of Division I players in digs per set each year of her career.
 
Dwyer and Forsythe will lead the Greyhounds in to the Patriot League Semifinals on Saturday, November 19, where they will play at Colgate University in a 3 o'clock match.