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Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
Fearless, Integrity, Effort, Respect, Commitment, Excitement
WVB_2022_team_huddle
0
Franklin Pierce FPU 2-3,0-0 NE10
3
Winner Daemen Daemen 1-0,0-0 ECC
Franklin Pierce FPU
2-3,0-0 NE10
0
Final
3
Daemen Daemen
1-0,0-0 ECC
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
Franklin Pierce FPU 10 14 22 (0)
Daemen Daemen 25 25 25 (3)
3
Winner Clarion Clar 6-0,0-0 PSAC
1
Daemen Daemen 1-1,0-0 ECC
Winner
Clarion Clar
6-0,0-0 PSAC
3
Final
1
Daemen Daemen
1-1,0-0 ECC
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Clarion Clar 17 25 25 25 (3)
Daemen Daemen 25 13 23 15 (1)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball | | CONTACT: Mary Margaret Johnson, Assistant Athletics Communications Director | mmjohnso@daemen.edu

Daemen Splits Sunday at Wildcat Den Classic

The Wildcats Opened Up The Season With A Win Before Dropping Second Match Of The Day


AMHERST, N.Y. - After beginning the Eli Irizarry era with a 3-0 sweep in the season opener, the Daemen University women's volleyball team dropped their second match to split the day at the Wildcat Den Classic at Lumsden Gym on Sunday.  

The Wildcats opened up the 2022 season with the first game of the tournament against Franklin Pierce, and Irizarry began his career as the new head coach of Daemen with a 3-0 victory (25-10, 25-14, 25-22) over the Ravens. Franklin Pierce entered this weekend's tournament with a 2-2 record. It marked the first time the Wildcats won their season opener since 2019's 3-0 sweep over Ursuline College at the Daemen Volleyball Invitational. 

In Daemen's second game of the day, they faced Clarion, who remains undefeated on the season after a 3-1 (25-17, 13-25, 23-25, 15-25) victory. The Wildcats took the first set, snapping a three-set slide to the Golden Eagles that went back to Sept. 1, 2017. The Golden Eagles went on to win the next three sets to take the game. Clarion hands Daemen its first loss of the young 2022 season.

The Wildcats will face Mercyhurst in the final game of the Wildcat Den Classic on Monday at 11:30 a.m. 

IMPACT PLAYERS
  • Graduate student outside hitter Sam Logan (Eden, N.Y.) finished with 17 kills, 14 of those against Clarion, and 14 digs on the day, marking her first double-double of the season. 
  • Junior middle blocker Vanessa Kuliga (Glenview, Ill.) was dominant in the middle, tallying a team-high three solo blocks and one assisted block. She also totaled 14 kills on the day.
  • Senior outside hitter Maggie Burns (Louisville, K.Y.) led the team on the day with 18 kills. She added 17 digs through both games for a double-double.
  • Junior Dunja Masic (McHenry, Ill.) handled the setting duties on Sunday, averaging 9.8 assists per set for a total of 59 assists. She finished the first day of the Wildcat Den Classic with a double-double, as she totaled 10 digs in the six sets she played in. Masic added four kills and no errors against the Golden Eagles. 
  • Freshman outside hitter Nahirka Malpica (Caguas, P.R.) shined in her collegiate debut against Franklin Pierce, notching five kills on seven total attacks and no errors to finish with a .714 percentage.
  • Junior libero Jasmine Brundage (East Aurora, N.Y.) totaled 22 digs on the day, with 18 of those coming in the loss to Clarion.
  • Sophomore Kate Ryan (Buffalo, N.Y.) served up three aces against Franklin Pierce, while Kuliga finished with four aces through both matches.
  • Sophomore middle hitter Amelia Armstrong (River Falls, Wisc.) tallied six kills vs. Clarion. 
  • Senior defensive specialist Mickaley Monahan (Saline, Mich.) took over libero duties in the season opener, picking up 12 digs and four assists against the Falcons. 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE VS. FRANKLIN PIERCE
  • Burns and Kuliga led the way offensively with eight and seven kills respectively. 
  • The Wildcats out-killed the Falcons, 41-22. Daemen finished with a .253 hitting percentage after putting down 41 kills with 16 hitting errors.
  • After Daemen cruised to a two set victory quickly (25-10, 25-14), Franklin Pierce responded in the third, jumping out to a 5-2 lead early. Back-to-back kills and an ace by Ryan helped tie the game up.
  • The Wildcats and Ravens exchanged points throughout the rest of the third set, and the final five Daemen points came off five straight kills, including the game winner by Malpica. 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE VS. CLARION
  • After playing just one set in the opener against Franklin Pierce, Logan played the entire time in all four sets against Clarion, and attributed to 14 of the team's 50 kills in the match.
  • The Wildcats handed Clarion their first set loss of the season. The Golden Eagles entered the match with a perfect 12-0 set record through their first four games of the year.
  • Logan racked up a team-high 14 kills in the match, averaging 3.5 kills per set.
  • Late in the third set, Daemen went on a 5-1 run to take a 21-20 lead over Clarion thanks to four straight kills and a Kuliga service ace. But back-to-back attack errors by the Wildcats and kills from Clarion's London Fuller and Cassidy Snider ended in a 25-23 set victory to give the Golden Eagles the 2-1 advantage.
  • The Golden Eagles racked up 16 kills in the fourth and final set while the Wildcats notched nine. Logan finished with a third of Daemen's kills in the fourth set with three of her own. 

UP NEXT
Daemen takes on Mercyhurst in the final match of the Wildcat Den Classic on Monday at 11:30 a.m. at Lumsden Gym. 
 
Daemen University features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 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 women's volleyball program on Twitter and Instagram at @DaemenWVB.
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