Women's Volleyball Returns To Action This Weekend

Wildcats Visit Queens & Mercy, Can Clinch Conference Tournament Berth With 2 Wins

11/1/2019 12:00:00 PM

MATCH INFORMATION & LINKS
Game #22
Daemen Wildcats (13-8, 3-3 ECC) vs. Queens Knights (2-15, 0-6 ECC)
Saturday, Nov. 2 | 1 p.m.
Flushing, N.Y. | Fitzgerald Gymnasium
Live Stats
Live Streaming Video (via ECC Network)

Game #23
Daemen Wildcats vs. Mercy Mavericks (10-16, 2-4 ECC)
Sunday, Nov. 3 | 12 p.m.
Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. | Victory Gymnasium
Live Stats
Live Streaming Video (via ECC Network)

THE SERVE
After a week-long hiatus, Daemen returns to action with back-to-back East Coast Conference matches this weekend in the New York City metro area. The Wildcats will be going for the season sweep of both opponents as they visit Queens and Mercy. Daemen downed the Knights and Mavericks in straight sets on consecutive days in early October at Lumsden Gymnasium. The Wildcats sit at 3-3 in ECC play following a gut-wrenching five-set loss to league-leading Molloy on Oct. 25. The result spoiled some tremendous individual efforts by Daemen's Courtney Bernard (career-high 17 kills) and Hannah McKee (career-high 58 assists), but the Wildcats remain in the hunt for a conference tournament berth. The Wildcats have won a combined 12 straight matches against this weekend's opponents.

ALL ABOUT ALBANO
Since taking the reins of the program in 2016, Stephanie Albano has built the Wildcats into one of the top teams in the East Coast Conference and NCAA Division II East Region. She's guided the program to a 70-43 overall record, a 36-12 mark in conference play, two ECC regular season championships, two NCAA tournament berths and an ECC tournament crown. Albano is a two-time ECC Coach of the Year, the 2016 NCAA Division II East Region Coach of the Year and past recipient of the American Volleyball Coaches Association 30 Under 30 Award. Albano's ascent into coaching came after a stellar prep and collegiate playing career. She was named the Gatorade New York State Player of the Year following her senior season at Lancaster High School, and went on play collegiately at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Before becoming Daemen's associate head coach in 2015, Albano held assistant coaching positions at Canisius, Medaille and Buffalo.

MAGICAL YEAR
The 2018 season was one for the ages as the Wildcats posted a 21-11 overall record, the 11th 20-win season in program history and their second as an NCAA Division II team. It included a run to the program's second ECC regular season championship as the Wildcats went 13-1 in conference play. Daemen opened the conference slate with nine straight wins. A 3-2 setback at New York Tech on Oct. 21 snapped the streak, but the Wildcats responded with four consecutive wins to close the regular season. They clinched the outright regular season league championship with a 3-2 win at Mercy on Nov. 3, an accomplishment that included the No. 1 seed and hosting rights for the ECC tournament. After falling short of the ECC tournament crown in 2016, the Wildcats sealed the deal this time around, defeating No. 4 Bridgeport (3-1) and No. 2 Molloy (3-1) at Lumsden Gymnasium. The Wildcats earned the No. 3 seed in the East Region Championship portion of the NCAA tournament, but their magical season came to an end following a 3-0 loss to eventual regional champion American International.

LIFE IN THE BALANCE
The Wildcats featured a balanced offensive attack in 2018 with six players averaging better than 2.0 kills per set. Five of those players return to the roster in 2019, and balance has again been a staple for the Wildcats as eight players are averaging at least 1.0 kill per set. Five players have recorded at least 10 kills in a match this season. Led by junior Allison Post (201 kills, 2.96 kills/set), junior Jenn Heritz (175 kills, 2.36 kills/set) and sophomore Sam Logan (164 kills, 2.34 kills/set), the Wildcats boast three of the top 12 hitters in the ECC, in terms of kills per set. Heritz and Logan led the way in a recent dismantling of Roberts Wesleyan, combining for 22 kills and a .500 hitting percentage. Although their kill numbers are slightly down from last season, seniors Meghan Ballou (1.97 kills/set) and Courtney Bernard (1.79 kills/set) are among the most efficient hitters in the league. Ballou is attacking a .327 clip, ranking third among the league leaders. Bernard ranks sixth with a .278 hitting percentage, and she powered down a career-high 17 kills against Molloy on Oct. 25.

SETTING THE TABLE
Sophomore setter Hannah McKee has come on of late to lead the Wildcats' setters. She's averaged 9.07 assists per set over the last eight matches, topping 25 total assists five times in that span. McKee, who is in her first season with the Wildcats after transferring last spring from St. Martin's (Wash.), has recorded 50+ assists in back-to-back matches, including a career-best 58 against Molloy on Oct. 25. She heads into this weekend ranking fourth among the ECC leaders in assists per set (8.00). Daemen's setting group also includes sophomore Isa McCaffrey, the 2018 ECC Co-Setter of the Year who recorded a league-best 1,097 assists last season. She became just the seventh player in team history to reach 1,000 in a single season. McCaffrey has posted at least 10 assists in 45 of 50 career matches, and she recently surpassed Chelsea Turcer for 10th place on Daemen's all-time assists list. Junior Georgia Wicker has also also seen action. She recorded 10+ assists in nine of the first 13 matches this season.

GETTING GREENY
With so much of the attention focused on Daemen's balanced offense in 2018, Ali Greenwood flew a bit under the radar as she anchored the Wildcat defense as its libero. Her contributions didn't go unnoticed by coaches and teammates however, and she was named the team's MVP after recording 507 digs, third-best among all ECC players. She has already set the tone again defensively in 2019, totaling a team-high 339 digs over the first 21 matches. She currently ranks third in digs per set (4.52) and total digs among the ECC leaders. Her performance at the season-opening Daemen Volleyball Invitational led to a selection on the all-tournament team as well as her first of two ECC Defensive Player of the Week honors this season. Greenwood has recorded 10+ digs in 48 of the last 54 matches dating back to her freshmen season. She posted 32 digs in Daemen's five-set win over Urbana earlier this season, one shy of her career-high. Greenwood recorded the 1,000th dig of her career in a 3-0 loss at Bridgeport on Oct. 12. In 76 career matches, the junior defensive specialist has totaled 1,081 digs, good for a 3.96 digs-per-set average.

QUEENS SCOUTING REPORT
Queens is led by interim head coach Stefan Leger who was elevated to the role last January after serving as an assistant coach with the Knights during the 2018 season. Just five players return from Queens' 2018 roster. The Knights posted a 1-25 overall record and an 0-14 mark in conference play last season. Sophomore outside hitter Dee-Ana Mitchell (2.00 kills/set), junior middle blocker Briana Green (1.58 kills/set) and senior middle blocker/right-side hitter Lauren Kehoe (1.88 kills/set) have been QC's top offensive players so far this season. Junior setter Alisha Matthews ranks fifth in assists per set (5.59) and eighth service aces per set (0.43) among the ECC leaders. Freshman middle blocker Alexis Deodat is contributing 0.75 blocks per set to pace the defensive efforts at the net. Queens snapped a 13-match slide with a 3-2 non-conference win over Concordia (N.Y.) on Oct. 19, but losses to Bridgeport (3-0) and Georgian Court (3-0) have followed.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. QUEENS
Series Record: 9-4
Streak: Won 3
Last Meeting: Daemen 3, Queens 0 | Oct. 5, 2019 | at Amherst, N.Y.

MERCY SCOUTING REPORT
Mercy appears to be a team on the rise as the Mavericks return eight players from their 2018 team that went 14-17 overall and 6-8 in ECC play, marking the program's best season since a 19-13 campaign in 2005. The Mavericks are getting great production out of several newcomers so far this season, beginning with senior outside hitter Imani DeBose, a transfer from The College of New Rochelle. DeBose will enter this weekend as the ECC leader in total kills (312) and kills per set (3.47). Sophomore Loreto Nunez Casal (3.01 kills/set) is also producing offensively, making Mercy one of two ECC teams with two players averaging more than three kills per set. Junior Natalia Garcia has been their primary setter, averaging 8.22 assists per set, good for third-best in the ECC. Defensively, Adriana Lopez-Soto (4.10 digs/set) and NeKendra Liddie (0.61 blocks/set) lead the way. The Mavericks are under the direction of head coach Georgia Efthalitsides who is in her fourth year at the helm. Mercy was picked fourth in the ECC preseason poll, and they've posted a 3-3 record over their last six matches. Most recently, the Mavericks earned a 3-0 win over Goldey-Beacom on Oct. 26.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. MERCY
Series Record: 11-2
Streak: Won 9
Last Meeting: Daemen 3, Mercy 0 | Oct. 4, 2019 | at Amherst, N.Y.

ON THE HORIZON
Daemen makes a short trip to Erie, Pa. on Wednesday, Nov. 6 to face highly-touted Gannon at the historic Hammermill Center.

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