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Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
Fearless, Integrity, Effort, Respect, Commitment, Excitement
wvb 2021 ecc champs
Geoff Schneider
2
Bridgeport UB 18-10,9-3 ECC
3
Winner Daemen DAE 22-7,12-0 ECC
Bridgeport UB
18-10,9-3 ECC
2
Final
3
Daemen DAE
22-7,12-0 ECC
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 5 F
Bridgeport UB 25 18 25 16 6 (2)
Daemen DAE 15 25 19 25 15 (3)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball | | CONTACT: Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate A.D. for Communications/Operations | 716-839-8385 | mmiranto@daemen.edu

Mission Accomplished: Wildcats Win ECC Tournament Crown

Daemen extends winning streak to nine straight, earns automatic bid to NCAA tournament

WATCH - HEAD COACH STEPHANIE ALBANO & VANESSA KULIGA POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE

AMHERST, N.Y. - That championship feeling was pulsating through Lumsden Gymnasium late this afternoon as top-seeded Daemen outlasted second-seeded Bridgeport in a thrilling five-set match (15-25, 25-18, 19-25, 25-16, 15-6) to win the 2021 East Coast Conference Volleyball Championship tournament. The Wildcats, now 22-7 on the season, will represent the ECC as the league's automatic qualifier for the upcoming NCAA Division II Championship. Regional bids, host sites and dates will be announced Monday at 7:30 p.m. on the NCAA Selection Show at ncaa.com.

Led by Vanessa Kuliga (Glenview, Ill.), who was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, Daemen grabbed the second ECC tournament title in team history and their first since 2018. Today's win extended the Wildcats' winning streak to nine-straight matches - their longest since rattling off 15 consecutive victories during the 2016 campaign. Daemen has won 18 of their last 20 matches. 

Bridgeport, which was appearing in the final round of the ECC Championship for the ninth time since 2008, finishes the season with an 18-10 record. The Purple Knights are left searching for their first conference championship since winning four straight from 2012-15. 

UB pushed the Wildcats like no other ECC team has this season. The Wildcats entered today's match with a 39-1 record in sets won against ECC opponents. Daemen overcame a 2-1 deficit and snapped a nine-match losing streak in five-set affairs, including three earlier this season. 

IMPACT PLAYERS
  • Kuliga, who totaled 11 kills on a .450 hitting percentage in last night's semifinal round victory over fourth-seeded Molloy, was on top of her game again today for the Wildcats, especially down the stretch. The sophomore middle blocker shared match-high honors with 14 kills and posted a .300 hitting percentage. She added a career-high eight blocks (seven assisted, one solo). Kuliga totaled 25 kills, nine blocks and had a .360 hitting percentage in the two tournament matches. 
  • Senior outside hitter Sam Logan (Eden, N.Y.) recorded her second straight double-double, finishing with 14 kills and 11 digs. Six of her 13 career double-doubles have come this season.
  • ECC Player of the Year Caitlyn Meyer (Clarence, N.Y.) flirted with a rare triple-double, finishing with 10 kills, nine digs and eight blocks (all assisted). Meyer has reached double-figure kills in 22 of 29 matches this season.
  • Sophomores Olivia Alessi (East Aurora, N.Y.) and Jasmine Brundage (East Aurora, N.Y.) both played key roles in the Daemen victory. Alessi finished with 45 assists and a career-high five service aces while Brundage, the ECC Libero of the Year, posted a match-high 24 digs. 
  • Bridgeport was led by Amanda Hennemann who totaled 14 kills and 13 digs. Hennemann, the ECC Preseason Player of the Year, played exclusively at outside hitter today after being UB's libero for much of the season. 
  • Emily Burford and Paolo Hernanez tallied 10 kills apiece, and setter Jaden Drollinger dished out 37 assists to go with five aces. 

CRUNCH TIME
After Bridgeport hammered 19 kills on a .326 hitting percentage in the third set to take a 2-1 lead, Daemen regrouped in time for the fourth. Leading 10-8, Daemen firmly grasped control of the set and saw the momentum turn in their favor during a 12-4 run. Logan and Kuliga each notched a pair of kills and Alessi served an ace in the spurt which put the Wildcats ahead 22-12. Meyer ended the frame shortly thereafter, sending the match to a fifth and deciding set.

With Daemen leading 5-4 early in the fifth set, the Wildcats embarked on the match's defining run. They rattled off eight consecutive points with Logan at the service line for seven of them. Logan put down two aces and Meyer added a pair of kills. When UB finally stopped the spurt, they were on the cusp of defeat, trailing 13-5. Kuliga picked up Daemen's 14th point on a kill, and the match came to an end when Meyer - Daemen's go-to player all season long - finessed a kill to the UB side of the floor which ignited a raucous celebration on the Lumsden Gymnasium court. 
 

GAME NOTES
  • Daemen hosted the ECC Championship for the third time since the program gained full NCAA Division II membership in 2015. Daemen first hosted in 2016 when they advanced to the final round before falling to second-seeded New York Tech. The tournament returned in 2018 when the Wildcats hoisted the championship trophy following wins over fourth-seeded Bridgeport and second-seeded Molloy. After tonight's win, Daemen is 5-2 all-time in ECC Championship play. 
  • This is the first ECC Championship to be held since 2019. The tournament and entire conference season was wiped out in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 
  • With tonight's win, Daemen improves to 20-4 against in-region opponents this season. Since the 2016 season, Daemen has won 74% of games against East Region opponents (81-29).
  • Daemen improved to 9-10 all-time against Bridgeport, including a 6-4 mark in meetings played at Lumsden Gymnasium. Daemen is 2-1 all-time against UB in ECC tournament matches. 
  • Daemen extended their home winning streak to 11 straight matches. The Wildcats are 10-0 at home this season, and have posted a 31-9 home record since the start of the 2018 season. 
  • Daemen is ranked fourth in the NCAA East Region poll released earlier this week by the regional advisory committee. The East Region of NCAA Division II is comprised of teams from the East Coast Conference, Northeast-10 Conference and Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference, and the regional rankings are used to determine at-large bids to the East Regional portion of the NCAA Tournament following the respective conference tournaments later this month.
  • The Wildcats have reached the 20-win plateau for the 12th time in program history, as well as the third time as an NCAA program. Daemen's 22 wins are the most in a season since 2016 when they advanced to the East Regional finals and finished with a 25-8 record. 
  • Daemen finished with 11 blocks - one shy of their season-high (12 in win over Stonehill).
  • Daemen's last five-set victory came September 7, 2019 against Urbana.

UP NEXT
Daemen will learn its NCAA tournament seed and first-round opponent in a Selection Show to be broadcast on ncaa.com Monday (Nov. 22) at 7:30 p.m.

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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