MATCH INFORMATION
Match No. 6
Daemen Wildcats (0-5, 0-2 ECC) vs. Salem Tigers (0-0)
Friday, Sept. 28 | 7:30 PM | Williamsville, N.Y. | Miller Tennis Center
Match No. 7
Daemen Wildcats (0-5, 0-2 ECC) vs. Merrimack Warriors (4-2, 4-0 NE-10)
Sunday, Sept. 30 | 1 PM | North Andover, Mass. | North Andover HS Courts
THE SERVE
Daemen plays a pair of non-conference dual matches this weekend as they'll host NCAA Division II independent Salem on Friday evening before heading to Massachusetts to face Northeast-10 Conference member Merrimack on Sunday. The match against Merrimack starts a stretch of five consecutive road contests for the Wildcats.
MCDERMOTT ERA
The 2018-19 season marks the start of a new era for Daemen as head coach Kerry McDermott begins his first season with the program. In early July, McDermott was named the third head coach in team history after spending the last 36 seasons as the head men's tennis coach at the University of Nebraska. In that time, McDermott led the Huskers to 405 victories, the most of any coach in team history, and two NCAA Tournament appearances. His tenure at the Division I school also included one season (1988-89) as the Huskers' head women's tennis coach.
10!
Daemen is coming off a 10-14 record in 2017-18, the program's first-ever 10-win season. The record-setting campaign included eight victories during the fall season, also the most the team has ever achieved, and tying the program record for wins in an entire season which had been done in each of the three previous seasons. An 8-1 win over Clarion on Feb. 23 broke that mark, and the Wildcats went on to add a 6-3 win over Fairmont State on April 7 to break into double figures.
ROCKIN' ROBINS
Senior Jessica Robins returns to the lineup as the team's most experienced and accomplished player. The North Tonawanda, N.Y. native has been a fixture in the lineup over her first three collegiate seasons, and is coming off the strongest season of her career. She posted a career-best 13 singles wins in 2017-18, ranking tied for fourth among the program's all-time single season leaders. Now with 60 combined singles and doubles wins in her career, Robins ranks third in team history. Her 60th win came against St. Thomas Aquinas' Anna Ristova earlier this week as she became just the third player in team history to reach 60 combined wins.
SUPER SOPH
Sophomore Christina Stasiuk also returns to the lineup after making an immediate impact in her rookie season. Stasiuk set a new benchmark for singles wins in a season, racking up 18 of them last year. She surpassed the previous record for singles wins by a freshman (13) set by Gretchen Ringler in 2014-15, and later eclipsed the overall record of 14 singles wins set by Hayle Scanlan in 2016-17. Stasiuk has gotten off to a fast start this season as she leads the team with a 4-2 mark in singles play. All four of her singles wins have come in the No. 1 spot in the lineup.
SALEM SCOUTING REPORT
Salem is an NCAA Division II independent, and the Tigers are led by second-year head coach Todd Tucker. Before coming to Salem, Tucker held assistant coaching positions at Division I Wright State and Division III Capital, and he also served as Wright's State's interim head coach during the 2014-15 season. The Tigers' roster features three returners and three freshmen. Senior Shelby Turpin and sophomores Kristina Vuksanovic and Brianna Vasquez return to lead the team this season. The Tigers are coming off a 1-22 season in 2017-18. Friday's match marks the first dual match of the season for Salem; a previously scheduled contest vs. California (Pa.) was postponed due to weather. The Tigers had an impressive showing at the ITA Atlantic Regional Championship earlier this month as freshman Julia Piatek reached the semifinals of the main singles draw. In doubles play, Piatek teamed with classmate Karolina Glowinska to advance to the semifinals of the main doubles draw.
ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. SALEM
Series Record: 1-0
Streak: Won 1
Last Meeting: Daemen 9, Salem 0 | Feb. 17, 2017 | Williamsville, N.Y.
MERRIMACK SCOUTING REPORT
Merrimack is a member of the Northeast-10 Conference, and the Warriors are led by third-year head coach Dena Madden who has guided the team to a 23-13 record in her tenure to date. The Warriors have also qualified for the NE-10 Conference Tournament in each of Madden's first two seasons. Eight players return from the Warriors' 2017-18 team that posted a 9-6 overall record. Among the returners is sophomore Cassie Restrepo who led the team with a 12-6 singles mark last season en route to NE-10 All-Rookie Team honors. Lauren Persson (9-8 in singles play last season), Mia Briggs (8-6) and Mana Seifaei (8-7) also return. The Warriors have opened the season with wins in four of their six contests to date. They'll face Assumption (Thursday) and Adelphi (Saturday) before closing the week against Daemen.
ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. MERRIMACK
Series Record: 0-0
Streak: N/A
Last Meeting: N/A
ON THE HORIZON
Daemen visits Division I Niagara next Thursday, Oct. 4.
