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Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
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WVB TEAM ACTION
0
D'Youville DYC 3-20,2-8 ECC
3
Winner Daemen DAE 17-7,10-0 ECC
D'Youville DYC
3-20,2-8 ECC
0
Final
3
Daemen DAE
17-7,10-0 ECC
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
D'Youville DYC 21 10 19 (0)
Daemen DAE 25 25 25 (3)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball | | CONTACT: Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate A.D. for Communications/Operations

Women's Volleyball Earns 10th Straight Conference Win

Wildcats off to best start of ECC era, sweeps season series with D'Youville

AMHERST, N.Y. - The Daemen women's volleyball team improved to 17-7 overall and kept their perfect East Coast Conference record intact following a 3-0 sweep (25-21, 25-10, 25-19) of visiting D'Youville at Lumsden Gymnasium this evening. 

At 10-0, the Wildcats are off to their best start in conference play since joining the ECC in 2013. Tonight's win eclipses the program's previous ECC-era record set in 2018 when they opened 9-0 en route to a 13-1 finish.

The Wildcats, who have won 13 of their last 15 matches overall, remain in control of the ECC standings and are now one win away from clinching the No. 1 seed to the ECC Championship tournament. The conference tournament features the top four teams in the final standings, and is slated for November 19-20 on the campus of the top seed. 

D'Youville is competing in the ECC for the first time as their program transitions from Division III to Division II. The Saints dropped to 3-20 overall and 2-8 in conference play. Daemen has won all six lifetime meetings against their fellow Western New York institution, three of which have come since the start of last season. 


IMPACT PLAYERS
  • Graduate student Caitlyn Meyer (Clarence, N.Y.) was swinging a heavy arm tonight as she powered down 11 kills on just 19 attempts (.579 hitting percentage), including several of the highlight-reel variety. Meyer, who entered the match averaging an ECC-best 3.47 kills per set, has now reached double-figure kills in 18 of 24 matches this season - her first with Daemen after a four-year career at Division I James Madison.
  • The Daemen offense was fairly balanced behind Meyer. Sam Logan (Eden, N.Y.) and Maggie Burns (Louisville, Ky.) put down six kills apiece on the outside, while middle blocker Vanessa Kuliga (Glenview, Ill.) chipped in with five. Logan added a team-high 11 digs and Burns contributed four of Daemen's nine service aces.
  • Olivia Alessi (East Aurora, N.Y.) tallied 23 assists from her setter position while splitting time with Dunja Masic (McHenry, Ill.) who registered eight assists.
  • Eve Musielak and Jaycee Karelus were the top point producers for D'Youville, finishing with four kills each.

TURNING POINT
After a back-and-forth opening set, Daemen really gained control with a 10-2 run to open the second. Meyer, Kuliga, Burns and Ali Cousins (Eldred, Pa.) all recorded kills in the spurt. The Daemen lead grew to 10 points (17-7) after a kill from freshman Kate Ryan (Buffalo, N.Y.) which prompted a D'Youville timeout. The pause only delayed the inevitable as the Wildcats rattled off eight of the next 10 points to take the set.

The third set played out more like the first with the teams trading blows. D'Youville led 15-13 after a kill by Brianna Damstetter, but Daemen responded with a definitive 9-1 run which included five straight errors by the Saints. Loren Alberts (Huntley, Ill.) got into the action with a pair of kills, the second of which put Daemen ahead 22-16. Kuliga and Meyer later combined on a block to seal the set and the match for the Wildcats.


GAME NOTES
  • Tonight's win was the 93rd in the career of Daemen head coach Stephanie Albano, moving her past Sally Kus for second in program history. Albano is 93-57 since taking the reins of the program in 2016. Mark Parisi holds the all-time coaching wins mark with 151 during his 10-year stint leading the program (2005-14). 
  • With 10 consecutive conference wins, the Wildcats have matched the longest conference winning streak in program history. Daemen has rattled off 10 conference wins in a row twice before (1999, 2004) with both occurrences coming during the program's NAIA era. 
  • Daemen has won seven straight home matches and are a perfect 6-0 at Lumsden Gymnasium this season. The Wildcats are 27-9 at home since the start of the 2018 season, and have posted a 25-5 record in home conference matches since Albano became head coach in 2016.

UP NEXT
The Wildcats will look to lock up the No. 1 seed in the ECC Championship tournament when they host Mercy at 1 p.m. Saturday (November 6). 

Daemen College features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 18 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.

Follow the Daemen College women's volleyball program on Twitter and Instagram at @DaemenWVB.
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