Senior middle blocker Ashley Benson is the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week, announced the conference office on Monday (Oct. 18). Benson averaged 3.3 blocks and 1.1 digs per set. This marks her fourth career Big Ten weekly honor, including her second of the defensive variety. Benson had arguably the best blocking weekend in Indiana University history. The Bloomington, Ind., native started with a record-breaking performance at Wisconsin. Benson racked up 13 total blocks (12 assists, one solo), setting the all-time school record for most blocks in a three-set match. The previous record was 10 stuffs, a record which had standed since 1996. Indiana's suffocating defensive performance (a school-record 17.5 team blocks) held the Badgers to a negative hitting efficiency. As if Friday night's performance wasn't enough, Benson kept it coming the following night versus No. 8 Illinois. She tallied 10 more block assists by the time the fourth set even began. Benson did more defensively than just build a wall in Champaign, she also dug up eight balls (two digs shy of a triple-double from the middle blocker position).
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