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Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
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krueger mvb vs ucla
3
Winner UCLA UCLA 1-0
0
Daemen DAEMEN 0-1
Winner
UCLA UCLA
1-0
3
Final
0
Daemen DAEMEN
0-1
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
UCLA UCLA 25 25 25 (3)
Daemen DAEMEN 16 16 17 (0)

Game Recap: Men's Volleyball | | By Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate A.D. for External Operations & Communications

Wildcats Hold Their Own In Loss To National Power UCLA

AMHERST, N.Y. - Sometimes when you lose to Goliath, there's still some positives to take away from the experience.

That was exactly the case tonight as the Daemen College men's volleyball team opened just the second season in program history with blue blood UCLA visiting a sold out Lumsden Gymnasium. Sure, the 19-time national champs knocked off Daemen in straight sets (25-16, 25-16, 25-17), but the Wildcats were good enough to show the promise that's enveloping their program. 

The match marked the regular season opener for both teams as UCLA, ranked No. 2 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division I-II preseason poll, moved to 1-0. The Bruins were coming off a trip north of the border where they played three exhibition matches in Toronto earlier in the week, and are looking to improve following a 19-9 campaign last spring. 

Daemen, which fielded a roster entirely of first-year college players last spring during a 6-17 campaign, dropped to 0-1 on the season. The Wildcats boast a 17-man roster this year, essentially doubling the amount of available bodies from a year ago. The roster includes eight returners and nine newcomers.

TOP PERFORMERS
  • UCLA was led by freshman outside hitter Alex Knight who totaled six kills on 12 attempts, attacking at a .417 clip for the match. 
  • Daenan Gyimah, a preseason All-America selection by Off the Block, chipped in with five kills in just seven attempts (.714 hitting percentage). Gyimah  led the Bruins in total kills (311) and ranked fourth nationally with a .435 hitting percentage last season.
  • Freshman setter Mads Kyed Jensen notched a match-high 12 assists for the Bruins. At 6-foot-10, the Denmark native also totaled four of UCLA's 12 service aces.
  • Cole Pender finished with a match-high nine digs for UCLA.
  • Daemen was led by graduate student Zach Yerington (Hamburg, N.Y.) The Ohio State transfer totaled six kills, six digs and two service aces in his first match for the Wildcats.
  • Jesse Donorovich (Lockport, N.Y.) and Ryan Parker (Fairport, N.Y.) notched three kills apiece.
  • Sophomore setter Michael Krueger totaled 11 assists, extending his personal streak of matches with 10+ assists to 24 in a row. 

HOW IT HAPPENED
  • The first set saw some back-and-forth action with underdog Daemen hanging tough against the Bruins. There was no more than a four-point spread on the scoreboard, until UCLA went on a 7-2 run to open up a 21-13 lead. Gyimah closed the set with a kills off a set from Sa Kobrine.
  • The second set played out similarly as Daemen led 7-5 early on. UCLA scored 13 of the next 17 points to go up 18-11 on a service ace by Gyimah. The Wildcats pulled within six at 20-14, but committed some errors down the stretch that allowed the Bruins to close the set.
  • UCLA went up 10-5 in the third set, prompting a Daemen timeout. The Wildcats made some headway, pulling within 10-7 following a kill by freshman Zach Schneider (Lockport, N.Y.), but UCLA regained control from there. 
  • UCLA totaled 23 kills in the match, and committed just five hitting errors (.383 hitting percentage). The Bruins finished fifth in the nation in hitting percentage (.323), fifth in aces per set (1.73) and sixth in kills per set (12.85) last season. 
  • Daemen totaled eight kills in the opening set, and finished with 18 in the match, but were undone by 23 hitting errors. 

WHAT THEY SAID
WHAT'S NEXT
Daemen will head north of the border for an exhibition tilt vs. Brock University on Thursday, Jan. 9. The Wildcats return to regular season action on Tuesday, Jan. 14 when 2019 national semifinalist Pepperdine University comes to Lumsden Gymnasium. 
 
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