Game #2
Daemen Wildcats (1-0, 0-0 NEC) vs. Penn State Nittany Lions (2-0, 0-0 EIVA)
Date: Friday, Jan. 13
Time: 7 PM
Location: University Park, Pa. | Rec Hall South Gym
Live Stream: via B1G+ (subscription required)
Live Stats: via gopsusports.com
 

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ON THE ROAD
The 1-0 Daemen University men's volleyball team hits the road for the first time in the 2023 season to play at Penn State University on Friday night at 7 PM. The Nittany Lions are ranked No. 4 in the latest AVCA Division I/II poll and are the preseason favorite to win the 2023 EIVA title. Friday's match marks the first time the Wildcats will face Penn State in Daemen program history.

WINNING WILDCATS
The Wildcats are coming off a huge 3-1 (25-27, 25-19, 25-16, 25-22) victory over Princeton in front of a near sellout crowd in Daemen's home opener on Tuesday night. After narrowly dropping the first set in extra points, the Wildcats went on to out-kill the Tigers 53 to 42 for a .267 hitting percentage in the match. Senior outside hitter Zach Schneider (Lockport, N.Y.) and junior outside hitter Cameron Milligan (Pavilion, N.Y.) combined for 30 of Daemen's 53 kills. Five Daemen players served up multiple aces on the day as the Cats totaled 11 service aces compared to just five for the Tigers.

SLAMMIN' SCHNEIDER
After setting a program-record (257) for kills in 2022, Zach Schneider picked up right where he left off after his junior season. Schneider led all hitters in the match against Princeton with 17 kills (4.25 kills per set) and finished with a .355 hitting percentage, and added two aces, two solo blocks and eight digs for a team-high 21 points on the day. The senior outside hitter totaled six kills in the fourth set alone, accounting for almost half of Daemen's fourth-set kills (13). 

CAM THE MAN
Junior outside hitter Cameron Milligan tied a career-high with 13 kills (3.25 kills per set) on 29 attacks for a .207 hitting percentage, joining Schneider as the only two Wildcats to total double-digit kills on the night. Milligan tallied two aces, two digs and a solo block against the Tigers to finish with 16 points. 

CALIFF WITH THE ASSIST
Senior transfer setter Sean Califf (Oak Park, Ill.) finished with a double-double in his Daemen debut on Tuesday night. Califf totaled 38 assists (9.5 assists/set) and added a team-high 10 digs (2.5 digs/set). On top of running the Wildcat offense on the floor to a 3-1 victory over the Tigers on Tuesday, Califf added five kills on seven attacks for a .714 hitting percentage and two aces in the win. 

HEAD COACH DON GLEASON
Don Gleason returns to the helm for his fifth year as the head coach of the Wildcats. In the program's first four years, Gleason has led Daemen to a 44-30 overall record, including a perfect 10-0 season in 2021 that saw the Wildcats as the only Division I-II team without a loss. Gleason led Daemen to a program high 16-win season in 2022.

UP NEXT
The Wildcats return to Lumsden Gymnasium for a home game against American International College on Saturday, Jan. 21 at 1 PM.

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SCOUTING THE PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS
After posting an impressive 23-4 overall record in the 2022 season that featured wins over four AVCA ranked teams, including NCAA runners-up Long Beach State, Penn State comes into Friday's match with a 2-0 record. The Nittany Lions have back-to-back 3-1 wins over Central State and Ohio State to open up the season, and have dominated the Marauders and Buckeyes statistically over both games. Penn State has out-killed opponents 102 to 74 for a .307 hitting percentage, compared to just .141 for their opponents, and out-blocked Central State and Ohio State 21.5 to 10.5. Senior opposite John Kerr leads the Nittany Lions with 27 kills on the year (4.5 kills per set), including a season-high 21-kill match against the Buckeyes, and ranks second on the team at the net with 8 total blocks. Junior outside hitter Michael Valenzi ranks second on the team offensively and totals 22 kills (2.75 kills per set). Graduate student Cole Bogner is the Nittany Lions' primary setter, and has a double-double (assists-digs) on the season while averaging 10.75 assists per set. Bogner and sophomore middle blocker Owen Rose lead the team with eight aces a piece on the year. Friday's match will mark the first time Daemen has faced Penn State in the Wildcats' five seasons. 
 

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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 University men's volleyball program on Twitter and Instagram at @DaemenMVB.