ECC Unbeaten Wildcats Return To Conference Play This Weekend

Wildcats set to host Queens and Molloy in back-to-back league matches

10/21/2021 10:25:00 AM

Match #21
Daemen Wildcats (13-7, 6-0 ECC) vs. Queens Knights (3-13, 2-4 ECC)
Date: Friday, Oct. 22
Time: 6 p.m.
Location: Amherst, N.Y. | Lumsden Gymnasum
Live Stream: Via ECC Network
Live Stats: Via daemenwildcats.com
Tickets: Buy tickets online via Hometown Ticketing
More Info: Daemen Spectator Policy

Match #22
Daemen Wildcats vs. Molloy Lions (9-10, 4-2 ECC)
Date: Saturday, Oct. 23
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: Amherst, N.Y. | Lumsden Gymnasum
Live Stream: Via ECC Network
Live Stats: Via daemenwildcats.com
Tickets: Buy tickets online via Hometown Ticketing
More Info: Daemen Spectator Policy

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW

1. BACK TO THE LEAGUE
The Daemen Wildcats return to East Coast Conference play with a pair of home matches this weekend as Queens and Molloy visit Lumsden Gymnasium. The Wildcats are the last remaining unbeaten team in ECC play and will be going for the season sweep against both the Knights and Lions. The Wildcats saw their six-match winning streak get snapped following a 3-1 loss to Gannon in a non-conference road match Tuesday. The Wildcats took the opening set (25-21) as they attempted to get their first win over Gannon since 1998, but the Golden Knights - a program with 11 consecutive NCAA tournament berths to their name - rallied to take the next three (15-25, 15-25, 16-25). Sam Logan (14 kills, 18 digs) and Maggie Burns (11 kills, 10 digs) each recorded double-doubles in defeat. Logan is averaging 3.41 kills per set over the last nine matches, and she ranks fifth in kills per set (2.98) among the ECC leaders for the season. The Wildcats enter the weekend as winners in nine of their last 11 matches overall, as well as four straight at home dating back to last season. Daemen is 24-9 in home matches since the start of the 2018 season and 22-5 in home conference matches since head coach Stephanie Albano took over in 2016.

2. LAST MEETING WITH QUEENS
Daemen cruised to a 3-0 victory (25-11, 25-14, 25-17) over Queens in their conference opener last month at Fitzgerald Gymnasium. Nine of the 14 players who saw action recorded at least one kill, led by freshman right side Kate Ryan who put down a season-high nine. The Wildcats posted double-figure kills in all three sets, while Queens managed just 17 in the entire match.

3. LAST MEETING WITH MOLLOY
In the teams' first meeting since 2019, Daemen totaled 45 kills on a .261 hitting percentage to get the best of Molloy - the defending ECC champs and the team picked first in this year's ECC preseason poll - in a straight-sets victory (25-19, 25-17, 28-26). Sam Logan (13 kills) and Caitlyn Meyer (10 kills) led the way for the Wildcats. Molloy held leads in all three sets, including a 26-25 advantage in the third with an opportunity to extend the match. But the Wildcats rallied with three straight points, including kills from Maggie Burns and Sam Logan to seal the deal.

3. PLAYOFF PICTURE
Daemen sits alone in first place in the ECC standings with a two-game lead over Bridgeport, Molloy and Mercy which are all tied for second with identical 4-2 records. The Wildcats can clinch a conference tournament berth with a win Friday over Queens. The ECC Championships feature the top four teams in the final conference standings and will be hosted by the number one seed November 19-20.

5. UP NEXT
The Wildcats continue conference play Tuesday, October 26 with a road game at Roberts Wesleyan.

QUEENS SCOUTING REPORT
Queens is a member of the East Coast Conference, and the Knights are led by head coach Stefan Leger. The Knights did not compete during the 2020-21 season due to COVID-19, and they return seven players from their 2019 team that finished 2-19 overall and 0-10 in ECC play. Leger, who took the reins in 2019, is charged with turning around a program that has not posted a winning season since 2008. The Knights are off to a 3-13 start, but have picked up two conference wins this season - the most they've had since finishing 4-10 in 2017. They are coming off a 3-0 loss to St. Rose earlier this week.

Junior outside hitter Dee-Ana Mitchell and freshman outside hitter Christina Franco have paced the Knights thus far, averaging 2.57 and 2.36 kills per set, respectively. Franco is also producing a team-high 3.22 digs per set. She's one of only three players in the ECC averaging at least 2.0 kills and 3.0 digs per set. At the net, sophomore middle blocker Alexis Deodat is contributing a team-high .222 hitting percentage and ranks third in the ECC for blocks per set (0.67).

The Knights are limiting opponents to a .186 hitting percentage, but have managed to hit just .096 themselves, resulting in just 8.82 kills per set (sixth in ECC). Queens was picked sixth in the ECC preseason coaches' poll.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. QUEENS
Series Record: Daemen leads 11-4
At Daemen: Daemen leads 6-1
Current Streak: Daemen won 5
Last Meeting: Daemen 3, Queens 0 (25-11, 25-14, 25-17) | Sept. 25, 2021 | at Flushing, N.Y.

MOLLOY SCOUTING REPORT
Molloy is a member of the East Coast Conference, and the Lions are led by first-year head coach Brian Smith. He was named to the position in August, taking over for Kevin DesLauriers who built the Lions into an ECC contender across his three seasons at the helm. The Lions posted a 74-20 record and won a pair of ECC championships from 2017-19 before opting out entirely of the unorthodox 2020-21 season due to COVID-19. Nine players from Molloy's 2019 team remain on the roster, including sophomore middle hitter Chye Davis, the 2019 ECC Rookie of the Year. The Lions put together a three-match winning streak, their best of the season, before suffering a 3-0 loss to Southern Connecticut State earlier this week.

Senior outside hitter/right side Graciela Cruz (3.02 kills/set) is pacing the Molloy offense with additional contributions coming from junior outside hitter Kathleen Doherty (2.25 kills/set) and Davis (2.02 kills/set). Cruz ranks fourth among the ECC leaders in kills per set and recorded a season-high 24 kills in matches against Adelphi and Southern Connecticut State. Emily Meyer (2.23 digs/set), a transfer from Division I Rhode Island, and Colleen Moulder (0.73 blocks/set) are leading Molloy defensively, while setter Kassie Akouri Tejedor ranks fourth in the league for assists per set (8.37).

As a team, Molloy leads the ECC in digs (16.73) and service aces (2.04) per set. Molloy was picked first in the ECC preseason coaches' poll.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. MOLLOY
Series Record: Daemen leads 12-5
At Daemen: Daemen leads 8-1
Current Streak: Daemen won 1
Last Meeting: Daemen 3, Molloy 0 (25-19, 25-17, 28-26) | Sept. 26, 2021 | at Rockville Centre, N.Y.

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