URBANA, Ohio. - The Daemen College men's volleyball team took both games of a tri-match hosted by Urbana University here this afternoon. After defeating the host Blue Knights 3-1, the Wildcats rallied to post the biggest win in the two-year history of their program with a thrilling 3-2 win over Lincoln Memorial University. All three schools are NCAA Division II independents in men's volleyball.

LMU is the defending champion of the Independent Volleyball Association Tournament. The Railsplitters defeated Daemen, 3-0, in the opening round of last year's IVA Tournament en route to winning the title. Urbana is in its first season as a varsity program.

Daemen rallied from two sets down in the win over LMU, and the Wildcats outlasted the Railsplitters 18-16 in the fifth and deciding set to secure the victory.

In addition to the team achievement, graduate student Zach Yerington (Hamburg, N.Y.) posted the most impressive effort by a Daemen player in the brief two-year history of the program. The Ohio State University transfer totaled a program-record 36 kills in the win over LMU, smashing the old record of 21 set by Jarari Winkfield (Oswego, Ill.) last year. Yerington's 36 kills in a match ranks as the most by any NCAA Division I/II player this season.

"We've been working hard on late game situations," said Daemen coach Don Gleason. "I'm so proud of how the guys stepped up late. Yerington was an absolute force today. LMU is a team that we have a ton of respect for, so being able to go toe-to-toe with them and come out on top was a huge step for us."

Daemen evened its record at 5-5 with the two wins today. LMU is now 5-4 on the year, while Urbana drops to 0-13. 
 

IMPACT PLAYERS VS. URBANA

• Daemen registered 56 kills, as freshman Zach Schneider (Lockport, N.Y.) led the way with a season-high 19. He also led the team in total attempts (30) and committed just one attack error for a hitting percentage of .600. He also recorded seven digs.
• Sophomore Jahari Winkfield (Oswego, Ill.) added a season-high 11 kills and a career-high nine blocks (one solo, eight assisted). He did not record an attack error in 13 attempts and posted an .846 hitting percentage.
• Sophomore Kyle Kon (Oswego, N.Y.) also reached double-digits in kills for the first time this season and finished with 10 kills and five digs. Yerington posted 10 kills. 
• Sophomore setter Michael Krueger (Canonsburg, N.Y.) tallied 39 assists, and sophomore defensive specialist Jaden Gillette (Spencerport, N.Y.) contributed a team high eight digs.
• Freshman Tyler Chavez paced the hosts with 15 kills and six digs, while fellow rookie Jack Brinkman added nine kills. Junior Chaz Hafer dished out a team-high 30 assists and also registered six digs.
  

SET-BY-SET SUMMARY VS. URBANA

Set One (DC 25, UU 17) - The teams traded points early on and hosts held a 12-11 lead when the Wildcats put together an 8-2 run to take a 19-14 lead. Daemen's lead never dipped below four points after that, and they secured the win with three unanswered points.

Set Two (DC 25, UU 19) - The teams once again traded points early on and Urbana held an 8-6 lead when the Wildcats scored four straight points and later took a 15-11 lead following a kill by Yerington. The Daemen lead was three points (16-13) when the Wildcats put together a 7-1 run to open up a 23-14 lead. Urbana made things interesting by scoring five of the next six points, but Daemen secured the win following a Urbana service error.

Set Three (UU 25, DC 23) - The host Blue Knights jumped out to a 7-3 lead and later took a 14-9 lead following a kill by Brinkman. Daemen scored the next three points and later cut the lead to a point, 18-17, following a kill by Yerington. The teams traded points and the Urbana lead was still just a point (20-19) when the hosts scored four of the next five points to take a 24-20 lead. Daemen scored three unanswered to once again make it a one point game, but Urbana secured the win following a kill by Hafer.

Set Four (DC 25, UU 14) - Similar to the first two sets the teams traded points early on an Daemen held a 9-7 lead when the visitors scored four unanswered points and later took a 17-10 lead following a kill by Kon. Urbana scored the next point, but Daemen then secured the win with a 6-1 run.

IMPACT PLAYERS VS. LINCOLN MEMORIAL

• Daemen totaled a season-high 66 kills, as Yerington led the way with a program-record 36. He totaled 58 attempts and posted a hitting percentage of .466. He also posted four service aces and six digs.
• Schneider capped off his solid day with 14 kills, four assists, four aces and four digs.
• Winkfield, who committed just one attack error over the two matches, added eight kills and a .438 hitting percentage. He also registered three blocks and finished the day with 12 blocks.
• Krueger established his career-high for assists (54) and digs (18) in a match, while Gillette and freshman Ryan Parker (Fairport, N.Y.) both chipped in seven digs. Parker also added three blocks.
• Senior Evan Cory led the Railsplitters with 23 kills and seven digs, while classmate Pedro Carvalho added 14 kills, four aces and six blocks. Junior A.J. Risavy dished out 50 assists for LMU.
  

SET-BY-SET SUMMARY VS. LINCOLN MEMORIAL

Set One (LMU 25, DC 15) - LMU jumped out to a 9-3 lead and later took a 13-6 lead following a Daemen attack error. The lead was still seven points, 16-9, when Daemen rattled off four unanswered to cut it to 16-13. That is as close as the Wildcats would get, as LMU secured the win with an 8-1 run that gave the Railsplitters a 24-14 lead.

Set Two (LMU 25, DC 19) - The teams traded points early on and the set was tied at 11-11 when the Railsplitters put together a 10-3 run that gave them a commanding 21-14 lead. Daemen came no closer than five points the rest of the way.

Set Three (DC 25, LMU 23) - Daemen jumped out to an early lead this time, as the Wildcats took an 11-5 lead following an ace by Schneider. The Daemen lead was 16-11 when the Railsplitters rallied with a 7-2 run that tied the set at 18-18. Daemen later opened up a 23-20 lead, but LMU scored three of the next four points to make it 24-23 Daemen. Krueger than set up Schneider for the set-ending kill.

Set Four (DC 25, LMU 23) - Neither team led by more than three points in set four, until the Wildcats ran off three straight points and took a 15-10 lead following a kill by Schneider. LMU regrouped following a timeout and eventually tied the set at 18-18. The teams then traded points before Daemen got back-to-back kills by Winkfield and Schneider to take a 24-22 lead. A Daemen service error made it 24-23, but another kill by Schneider earned Daemen the win and forced a fifth and deciding set.

Set Five (DC 18, LMU 16) - LMU held a 6-5 lead when the Wildcats put together a 6-1 run that featured two kills by Yerington and four LMU errors. The teams then traded points and Daemen eventually found itself serving for the match with a 14-12 lead. LMU tied the set following back-to-back Daemen attack errors, but a kill by Yerington gave the Wildcats a 15-14 lead. LMU tied it following a kill by junior Logan Kerley, but Winkfield answered with a kill to give Daemen a 16-15 lead. A kill by Cory tied it one last time, before Yerington capped off his outstanding day with back-to-back kills to give the Wildcats the win.

NEXT SERVE
Daemen is idle until next weekend when it travels to Aurora, N.Y. to take part in the Wells Classic Tournament. The Wildcats will face SUNY Potsdam and tournament host Wells Friday (Feb. 14) night and Penn State Altoona Saturday (Feb. 15) afternoon.