No volleyball player in Youngstown State history has more assists than setter extraordinaire Melisssa Lyczkowski. Lyczkowski holds the school mark with 4,820 assists and an average of 11.39 per set playing from 1998 through 2001. She has nearly 800 more assists than the player with the second most in school history.
Lyczkowski had more than 1,000 assists and 200 digs in each of her four seasons. In 423 career sets and 121 matches played, she had 1,109 digs (averaging 2.62 per set), 136 kills, 100 total blocks (93 assists and seven solos) and 88 service aces. She was a member of the first Horizon League squad in 2001 and the final Mid-Continent Conference team in 2000.
As a senior, she had 1,039 assists, 246 digs, 28 service aces and 20 kills in 98 sets. She averaged 10.60 assists and 2.51 digs per game. Highlighting her final campaign, she had a career-best 73 assists against Robert Morris. On five occasions, she had 50-or-more assists in a match during the year. She also had a season-best 28 digs against RMU and added 26 against Milwaukee.
In 2000 as a junior, Lyczkowski had 1,119 assists, 232 digs, 35 kills and 20 aces in 102 games played. She averaged 10.97 assists and 2.27 digs per set. Her best match of the season was a 63-assist effort against Bucknell, which is a school record for a three-set match. She also had a 60-assist performance versus UNC-Asheville. She had a season-best 17 digs against Oakland.
For her efforts outside of the court, she was an academic all-conference selection. During the year she set the school's record for career assists.
During one of the finest seasons by a team in school history in 1999, she had the best season by a setter in program history. The Penguins finished 27-5 overall and tied for the Mid-Con title with a 13-1 league mark. The Guins also reached the Conference Tournament final.
As a sophomore, she set a school record with 1,373 assists averaging a school-best 12.26 assists per set, which led the conference. A second-team All-Mid-Con pick, she played in 112 sets, had a career-high 349 digs, a career-best 50 kills, a career-high 45 total blocks and a personal-best 26 service aces. On 11 occasions during the year, she had more than 50 set assists. Lyczkowski had a season-best 69 assists and 24 digs against Saint Peter's. She also had a 61-assist effort versus Duquesne.
Lyczkowski burst on the scene as a freshman in 1998. She was named the Mid-Con's Newcomer of the Year, selected to the all-newcomer squad and was a second-team all-conference honoree leading the Guins to 20 overall wins and nine conference victories. For the season she had 1,289 assists in 111 sets played, an average of 11.61 per game. Against league foes she had a conference-best 13.46 assists per game. She also had 282 digs (2.54 digs per game), 31 kills and 21 service aces. She had a season-best 65 assists against Eastern Michigan, and four times she had more than 60 assists in a match. On 10 occasions she had more than 50 assists.
A native of Temperance, Mich., she is a graduate of Bedford High School. At Bedford, she was a first-team all-state Class A selection as a senior. Lyczkowski was named the Monroe County Athlete of the Year as well as Bedford's Female Athlete of the Year.
She earned her bachelor's degree in Computer Information Systems. She is currently a homemaker.
Melissa Brown and her husband, Andrew, reside in Temperance with their two children, Alivia and Evan.
