Daemen vs. Roberts Wesleyan
Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2014
Voller Athletic Center, Rochester, N.Y.
LIVE STATS
THE MATCHUP: The Daemen College women's volleyball team opens up East Coast Conference play tomorrow night (Sept. 16) at rival Roberts Wesleyan Colllege. It marks the 2014 home-opener for the Redhawks. Game time is 7 p.m.
THE COACHES: Mark Parisi begins his 10th year as head women's volleyball coach at Daemen and entered the 2014 season just one win shy of 150 for his career. He owns a 149-160 (.482) career record. Success has been the norm in recent years, as the Wildcats have posted at least 23 wins in each of the last three seasons and have claimed back-to-back (2012, 2013) United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) national championships…Jon and Kirsten Meyers are in their seventh year as head women's volleyball coaches at Roberts Wesleyan and entered the 2014 season with a 106-99 (.517) career record...they were named ECC Coaches of the Year after leading the Redhawks to a 20-12 overall record and a third-place showing (11-4) in the ECC in 2012.
NCAA DIVISION II: Daemen is in the Provisional Year of the NCAA Division II membership process. Daemen has been accepted as a member of the East Coast Conference (ECC) and began playing full regular-season conference schedules last fall. The College will also maintain its affiliation with the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) for postseason opportunities, as it will not be eligible for the ECC or NCAA postseason during Candidacy Year Three…Roberts Wesleyan was a year ahead of Daemen in the NCAA membership process and became an official NCAA Division II member this summer.
THE HISTORY: Daemen and RWC are former American Mideast Conference rivals...Daemen has dominated the series in recent years, prevailing in 10 of the last 13 meetings…the Wildcats posted two wins over the Redhawks last year, a 3-0 (25-23, 27-25, 23-21) victory at RWC and a 3-2 (24-26, 25-19, 25-20, 24-26, 15-8) win at Daemen.
THE WILDCATS (0-9, 0-0 ECC): Daemen returns 10 players from last year's team that posted a 23-10 record and claimed its second-straight USCAA championship...Daemen went 10-6 in the competitive East Coast Conference last fall and was voted third in the ECC preseason poll this year…graduation took its toll with the loss of the team's top setter and defensive specialist, and Parisi must also overcome the loss of middle blocker Ye Wang who has decided to red-shirt the 2014 season…a two-time USCAA All-America selection, Wang also earned first-team All-ECC honors last fall after leading the team in kills (397) and blocks (97)…seniors Lindsey Nowak and Chelsea Turcer and sophomore Amber Drzymala top the list of returning players…Nowak was a first-team USCAA All-America selection last fall after ranking second on the team in kills (296) and third in blocks (38)…Turcer ranked second on the team in assists (487), third in service aces (38) and fifth in digs (164)…Drzymala played in 28 of 33 matches as a freshman and totaled 263 digs, 144 kills and 32 service aces…newcomers Katie McKrell, Jenna Reeser and Jakki Steck are expected to make an immediate impact…click HERE for a complete season preview…the Wildcats opened the 2014 season at the East-West Challenge in Hawaii and remained winless after dropping four matches at the Eckerd College Classic last weekend…Nowak recored double-digit kills in each of the four matches last weekend and totaled 15 kills in a 3-1 loss to Eckerd…she has totaled a team-high 91 kills…Drzymala equaled her career-high for kills (16) in a 3-1 loss to Queens and has totaled 84 kills and 64 digs…freshman Katie McKrell had 27 assists in the 3-1 loss to Queens and has totaled a team-high 144 assists…additional production has come from Turcer (86 digs), sophomore Ryanne Dugan (63 assists, 24 digs), Reeser (33 kills, 11 blocks) and Steck (31 kills, 23 digs).
THE REDHAWKS (4-3, 0-0 ECC): Roberts Wesleyan was picked sixth in the ECC preseason poll...the Redhawks return nine players from last year's team that posted a 12-18 record (5-11 ECC)…seniors Jordan Wilson and Kendall Havener and juniors Maggie Concannon and Olivia Zureck top the list of returning players…Wilson and Havener both collected All-ECC honors two years ago, while Concannon was tabbed ECC Rookie of the Year in 2012...Wilson totaled 288 kills and 59 blocks last year, while Havener added 284 kills and a team-high 94 blocks...Concannon has dished out over 1,000 assists in each of her first two seasons and last year totaled 1,067 assists…RWC opened the year by winning three of four matches at the Georgian Court University Tournament, before posting a 3-2 win at Le Moyne on Sept. 10…the Redhawks traveled to The College of Saint Rose for a tri-match this past weekend and suffered losses to the host Gloden Knights (3-0) and Pitt-Johnstown (3-2)…freshman Courtney Taylor had 24 kills in a 3-2 win over Caldwell and has totaled a team-high 24 kills thus far…additional production has come from Havener (76 kills, 15 aces. 16 blocks), Wilson (69 kills, 16 blocks), Concannon (231 assists) and Zureck (103 digs).
ROAD WARRIORS: Daemen has played 120 matches since the start of the 2011 season and 98 of the 116 matches have been played away from the friendly confines of Lumsden Gym. The Wildcats are 59-39 (.602) on the road since the start of the 2011 season.
WHAT'S NEXT: The Wildcats play their first matches of the season in the friendly confines of Lumsden Gymnasium this weekend. Daemen hosts Dowling College Friday (Sept. 19) night and the University of Bridgeport Saturday (Sept. 20) afternoon. Click HERE to view Daemen's complete schedule.
FOLLOW THE WILDCATS: Follow Daemen College athletics on Twitter (@DaemenAthletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/daemencollegeathletics) to get live game updates and breaking news throughout the year.
