THE LEAD: The Daemen College women's volleyball team opens the 2014 season this weekend when it takes part in the East-West Challenge on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. The tournament is being hosted by Chaminade University and Brigham Young University-Hawaii.

MAKING HISTORY: This weekend will mark the first time in the history of Daemen College athletics that a team will play a game in the The Aloha State.

THE SCHEDULE: Daemen will play five matches over the span of three days. All matches are against NCAA Division II competition, including BYU-Hawaii which posted a 29-2 record last fall and advanced to the championship game of the 2013 NCAA Division II Championship Tournament.

Thursday, Sept. 4 (at Chaminade University)
Daemen vs. Florida Inst. of Technology, 4:30 p.m. HAST (10:30 p.m. EST) / LIVE STATS
Daemen vs. Chaminade, 7 p.m. HAST (1 a.m. EST) / LIVE STATS

Friday, Sept. 5 (at BYU-Hawaii)
Daemen vs. Hawaii-Hilo, 3 p.m. HAST (9 p.m. EST) / LIVE STATS / LIVE VIDEO
Daemen vs. BYU-Hawaii, 7:30 p.m. HAST (1:30 a.m. EST) / LIVE STATS / LIVE VIDEO

Saturday, Sept. 6 (at Chaminade University)
Daemen vs. Chaminade, 11 a.m. HAST (5 p.m. EST) / LIVE STATS

THE COACH: Mark Parisi begins his 10th year as head women's volleyball coach at Daemen and enters the 2014 season just one win shy of 150 for his career. He owns a 149-151 (.497) 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.

NCAA DIVISION II: Daemen is in Candidacy Year Three 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.

THE WILDCATS: 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 Jenna Reeser and Jakki Steck are expected to make an immediate impact…click HERE for a complete season preview.

THE PANTHERS: Florida Institute of Technology is a member of the Sunshine State Conference and was voted eighth in the SSC preseason poll…the Panthers posted a 15-15 overall record and a 5-11 mark in the SSC last fall…head coach Amy O'Brien enters her third season and returns 12 players from last year's team…juniors Kim Juriga, Marilyn Dick, Ashtin Truesdale and Alea Hamm top the list of returning players…Juriga ranked second on the team in kills (286) and also totaled 119 digs and 74 blocks…Dick ranked third in kills (249), while Truesdale led the team in assists (716) and ranked third in digs (194) and second in service aces (29)…the 6-foot-3 Hamm totaled 122 kills and ranked second in blocks (95).

THE SILVERSWORDS: Chaminade is a member of the PacWest Conference and was voted 10th in the PacWest preseason poll…the Silverswords posted a 9-16 overall record and a 6-14 mark in the PacWest last fall…head coach Kahala Kabalis Hoke enters her third season and returns 10 players from last year's team…junior Brenda Walker collected third team all-conference honors last year after totaling a team-high 402 digs…juniors Regina Johnson (112 kills, 66 blocks) and Valentina Bevilacqua (341 assists, 142 digs), sophomore Cassie Rushlow (115 kills) and senior Athena Maskarich (188 digs) also return.

THE VULCANS: Hawaii Hilo is a member of the PacWest Conference and was voted 11th in the PacWest preseason poll…the Vulcans posted a 11-14 overall record and a 6-14 mark in the PacWest last fall…head coach Tino Reyes enters his third season and returns 10 players from last year's team…sophomore outside hitter Marley Strand-Nicolaisen led the team in kills (341) and digs (251) last year and earned PacWest Freshman of the Year honors…seniors Callie Aberle (205 kills, 212 digs) and Kahealani Vento-Rowe (216 digs) and sophomores Kyndra Trevino-Scott (255 kills, 71 blocks) and Sienna Davis (769 assists) also return.

THE SEASIDERS: BYU Hawaii is a member of the PacWest Conference and was voted second in the PacWest preseason poll…the Seasiders posted a 29-2 overall record (19-1 PacWest), claimed the NCAA Tournament West Region title and advanced to the championship game of the NCAA Tournament last year…head coach Mona Ah-Hoy enters her second season and returns seven players from last year's team…senior outside hitter Shih Ting Chen tops the list of returning players…a three-time PacWest Player of the Year selection, she led the PacWest and ranked second nationally in kills per game (5.09)…she also led the team in digs (405) and also contributed 33 service aces and 42 blocks…senior Erh Fang Hsu collected second-team All-PacWest honors last year after totaling 266 kills and 55 blocks…sophomore Noel Pauga (189 kills, 19 service aces) and junior Kathleen Collette (233 digs) also return.

ROAD WARRIORS: Daemen has played 111 matches since the start of the 2011 season and 89 of the 111 matches have been played away from the friendly confines of Lumsden Gym. The Wildcats are 59-30 (.663) on the road since the start of the 2011 season.

WHAT'S NEXT: The Wildcats continue to build up their frequent flyer miles next weekend (Sept. 12-13) when they head to St. Petersburg, Fla. to take part in the Eckerd College Classic.

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.