Women's Volleyball 9/7/2018 10:20:00 AM By Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate A.D. for External Operations & Communications

Regional Foes Await Women's Volleyball At Post Eagles Invitational

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION & LINKS
Post Eagles Invitational
Hosted by Post University | Waterbury, Conn. | Drubner Center

Saturday, September 8
9:30 a.m. - Daemen Wildcats (2-5, 0-0 ECC) vs. Le Moyne Dolphins (3-1, 0-0 NE-10)
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3:30 p.m. - Daemen Wildcats (2=5, 0-0 ECC) vs. Bentley Falcons (1-5, 0-0 NE-10)
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Sunday, September 9
9:30 a.m. - Daemen Wildcats (2-5, 0-0 ECC) vs. Caldwell Cougars (1-4, 0-0 CACC)
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1:30 p.m. - Daemen Wildcats (2-5, 0-0 ECC) vs. Post Eagles (1-6, 0-0 CACC)
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THE SERVE
Daemen plays in its third and final tournament of the season this weekend with four matches at the Post Eagles Invitational. Four regional opponents sit on the docket for Daemen this weekend. Since the start of the 2015 season, Daemen is 13-6 in non-conference matches against fellow East Region members, and 43-25 in all regional matches (includes conference matches).

SUPER STEPH
Stephanie Albano enters her third season as Daemen's head coach in 2018. She was promoted to the position in 2016 after serving one season as the team's associate head coach. In her first two seasons at the helm, Albano has led the program to a 36-24 overall record and a 20-8 mark in ECC play. In 2016, she was named the East Coast Conference and NCAA Division II East Region Coach of the Year after leading Daemen to the ECC regular season championship. That season also saw Daemen host both the ECC and NCAA Division II East Regional tournaments with the Wildcats advancing to the finals of each. Albano was also selected as one of the American Volleyball Coaches Association 30 Under 30 award recipients in the spring of 2017.

2017 RECAP
The 2017 campaign saw Daemen post an 11-16 overall record and a 7-7 mark in ECC play. The top five teams in the league last season (Molloy, LIU Post, NYIT, Bridgeport, Daemen) really separated themselves by going a combined 49-21 in league play (.700 winning percentage), compared to the combined record of the league's bottom three teams (Queens, Roberts Wesleyan, Mercy) which was 7-35 (.167 winning percentage). Daemen finished comfortably ahead of sixth-place Queens (7-17, 4-10 ECC), but their 7-7 league record was one win shy of fourth-place Bridgeport (12-16, 8-6 ECC) who captured the fourth and final conference tournament berth.

RETURNING WILDCATS
The Wildcats return 10 players from their 2017 roster, and those returning accounted for 74 percent of the team's total kills and 73 percent of the team's total digs. The group of returners is headlined by junior outside hitter/middle hitter Meghan Ballou and sophomore middle hitter/right side hitter Jenn Heritz. Ballou led the team in kills (303), kills per set (3.06) and total attacks (934) last season en route to earning second team All-ECC honors. She also led the team with 11 double-doubles last season. Heritz was named the team's MVP after putting together a fine rookie season. A two-time ECC Rookie of the Week honoree, Heritz led the team in blocks (48) and contributed 214 kills, tops among the team's six freshmen. The Wildcats also retain the services of Cristina Apostol, a 6-foot-2 junior middle blocker who has seen action in 56 of a possible 60 matches over her first two collegiate seasons. Apostol notched a career-best 10 matches with double-figure kills in 2017, while also contributing 47 blocks.

GET DEFENSIVE
The Wildcats also return a trio of experienced defensive specialists in Kailey Ballou, Ali Greenwood and Georgia Wicker. Ballou, the team's lone senior, enters her final collegiate campaign with 79 matches and 300 sets under her belt. In that time, she's posted 10 or more digs in a match 39 times. Both Greenwood and Wicker spent time as the Wildcats' primary libero in 2017. Wicker totaled a team-best 409 digs, the most for a Wildcat newcomer since Paige Tilert's 401 during the 2012 season.

REPLACING MCKRELL
One familiar face that is not back with the team is setter Katie McKrell who was lost to graduation. A four-year team member, McKrell closed her career with 2,549 assists - one of only four players in team history to surpass the 2,500 milestone. She also ranks second all-time at Daemen with 8.22 assists per set for her career. The task of replacing McKrell will likely fall on the shoulders of freshman Isa McCaffrey, the only true setter on the Wildcats' roster in 2018. McCaffrey earned first team All-District honors and surpassed 1,000 assists in both her junior and senior seasons at Magnificat High School in suburban Cleveland.

THE EDEN PIPELINE
The Wildcats also landed 5-foot-10 outside hitter Sam Logan as part of their 2018 recruiting class. Logan comes to Daemen from the storied program at Eden High School where she helped the Lady Raiders to three consecutive New York State Class C championships. A two-time All-State honoree, Logan is the latest Eden product to don the Daemen blue and white as she joins fellow Eden alums Kailey and Meghan Ballou. Logan is expected to make an immediate impact this season for the Wildcats.

OH-IO
Last weekend, the Wildcats went on the road for the first time this season to partake in the Hall of Fame City Challenge hosted by Malone. Daemen posted a 1-3 record at the tournament, defeating Notre Dame (Ohio) and suffering losses to Seton Hill, Southern Indiana and Malone.

COMING OF AGE
Freshman setter Isa McCaffrey picked up a pair of honors for her play at last weekend's Hall of Fame City Challenge where she racked up 136 assists to lead all players at the tournament. She was named to the All-Tournament Team at the conclusion of the event, and later picked up ECC Rookie of the Week honors. Through the first seven matches of her career, McCaffrey has totaled 229 assists which presently leads all ECC players. She also ranks second in the league in assists per set (9.96).

LE MOYNE SCOUTING REPORT
Le Moyne is a member of the Northeast-10 Conference and the Dolphins are led by alumnus Lizzie Cheek. The 2010 Le Moyne graduate is now in her fifth season at the helm, and she's led the Dolphins to a 56-51 record to date. The crowning achievement of Cheek's tenure thus far was the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament berth in 2016. Coming off a 14-12 record last season, the Dolphins return nine players to the mix including a pair of third team All-NE-10 honorees in senior defensive specialist Mikayla Porr and senior right side hitter Jessica Miller. Porr (539 digs, 5.56 digs/set in 2017) was one of only five NE-10 players to surpass 500 digs while also leading the league in digs per set last season. Miller (323 kills, 3.33 kills/set .265 hitting percentage in 2017) finished sixth in the league in kills per set last season; of the 11 NE-10 players with 300+ kills, Miller was one of two with a hitting percentage better than .250. The Dolphins were picked eighth (out of 15) in the NE-10 preseason poll. Le Moyne opened the 2018 season by going 3-1 in four matches on Long Island last weekend. Among the team's victories was a true road win at ECC member LIU Post. Their lone loss was a five-set thriller against defending ECC champion Molloy.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. LE MOYNE
Series Record: 5-5
Streak: Lost 2
Last Meeting: Le Moyne 3, Daemen 0 | Sept. 19, 2017 | Amherst, N.Y.

BUDDING RIVALRY
Saturday's meeting with Le Moyne will mark the seventh consecutive season that the teams have met. Two of the last three meetings have been five-set affairs. Saturday's match is the first of two meetings between the Wildcats and Dolphins this season. Daemen will travel to Syracuse to take on Le Moyne on Tuesday, Oct. 9.

BENTLEY SCOUTING REPORT
Bentley is a member of the Northeast-10 Conference, and the Falcons are led by veteran mentor Joey Pacis. Now in his fifth season with the program, Pacis has guided the Falcons to a 68-55 record to date. His career record stands at 185-171 after previously serving as the head coach at Merrimack. The Falcons posted a 19-10 overall record and a 10-4 mark in league play last season, and 10 players from their 2017 roster return to the fold in 2018. The returners are headlined by a trio of All-NE-10 honorees. Junior outside/right side hitter Dani Milner (310 kills, 3.41 kills per set) finished fourth in the NE-10 in kills per set last season en route to first team All-NE-10 honors. Junior middle blocker Rachel Bruno was a second team All-NE-10 pick after leading the league with a .357 hitting percentage; she also averaged 0.91 blocks per set, good for fifth in the league. Kirsten Segaline was selected to the NE-10 All-Rookie Team after recording 221 kills and 218 digs. The Falcons have been picked fourth in the NE-10 preseason poll. The Falcons enter this weekend with just one win in their first six matches of the season; they snapped a four-match slide with a 3-0 win over Florida Tech at the Embry-Riddle Tournament in Daytona Beach last weekend. The only regional result for the Falcons thus far was a 3-2 loss to Georgian Court in their season opener on Aug. 25.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. BENTLEY
Series Record: 0-1
Streak: Lost 1
Last Meeting: Bentley 3, Daemen 0 | Sept. 26, 2015 | Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.

CALDWELL SCOUTING REPORT
Caldwell is a member of the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference, and the Couagrs are led by seventh-year head coach John Titus who has guided the program to a 132-74 record in his tenure to date. The Cougars are the defending CACC champions; they posted a 25-8 overall record and a 16-3 league mark last season. Victories over Goldey-Beacom, Holy Family and Jefferson in CACC Tournament play propelled the Cougars into the NCAA East Regional where their season came to an end against top-seeded New Haven. Titus must cope with the graduation of two key players from last year's team - Katrina Janssen, the 2017 CACC Player of the Year, and Jessica Mitchell, the 2017 CACC Defensive Player of the Year. The cupboard is not bare though as second team All-CACC selection Katie Compagno returns to lead a 16-player roster that features six returning players. Compagno did the majority of work at the middle of the net, finishing second among all CACC players with 120 blocks last season. The Cougars have been picked to repeat as champions of the CACC North Division, according to the league's preseason poll. After opening the season with three straight losses, the Cougars have rebounded to win two of their last three, beginning with a 3-0 defeat of ECC member Queens.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. CALDWELL
Series Record: 0-0
Streak: N/A
Last Meeting: N/A

POST SCOUTING REPORT
Post is a member of the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference, and the Eagles are led by longtime head coach Michael Brienza. Now in his 212th season at the helm, Brienza has guided the Eagles to a 152-204 record to date. The team returns nine players from their 2017 team that went 17-14 overall and 15-4 in league play. The group of returners is headlined by a trio of All-CACC performers. Senior setter Brianna Root racked up 1,121 assists last season, one of only two players league-wide to surpass 1,000 for the season. She finished second in the CACC in total assists and third in assists per set (9.42). Second team All-CACC selection Madison Hunziker returns after leading the team and finishing fifth in the league with 427 kills. And, third team All-CACC pick Ashley Levatino, a sophomore middle hitter, also returns after posting 214 kills and 76 blocks as a rookie. The Eagles were picked second in the CACC North Division preseason poll. They've jumped in the win column just once in seven total matches so far this season. Several losses have come against recent NCAA Tournament qualifiers like American International, Molloy, LIU Post and New Haven.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. POST
Series Record: 1-1
Streak: Won 1
Last Meeting: Daemen 3, Post 2 | Dec. 1, 2016 | Amherst, N.Y. | NCAA East Regional Quarterfinals

ON THE HORIZON
Daemen opens East Coast Conference play by hosting rival Roberts Wesleyan next Wednesday, Sept. 12. It'll mark the Wildcats' first home action at Lumsden Gymnasium since Aug. 25.

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Players Mentioned

#15 Cristina Apostol: MB; 6' 2"; Sophomore

#1 Kailey Ballou: L; 5' 7"; Junior

#2 Meghan Ballou: OH; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#11 Katie McKrell: S; 5' 8"; Senior

#3 Ali Greenwood: DS; 5' 6"; Freshman

#5 Jenn Heritz: MH; 6' 0"; Freshman

#10 Georgia Wicker: DS; 5' 3"; Freshman

#11 Isa McCaffrey: S; 5' 8"; Freshman

#6 Sam Logan: OH; 5' 10"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#15 Cristina Apostol
: 6' 2"; Sophomore
: MB

#1 Kailey Ballou
: 5' 7"; Junior
: L

#2 Meghan Ballou
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: OH

#11 Katie McKrell
: 5' 8"; Senior
: S

#3 Ali Greenwood
: 5' 6"; Freshman
: DS

#5 Jenn Heritz
: 6' 0"; Freshman
: MH

#10 Georgia Wicker
: 5' 3"; Freshman
: DS

#11 Isa McCaffrey
: 5' 8"; Freshman
: S

#6 Sam Logan
: 5' 10"; Freshman
: OH