Geoff Schneider

Wildcats To Play A Trio Of Road Matches This Weekend

10/5/2023 10:18:00 AM

By: CONTACT: Mary Margaret Johnson, Assistant Athletics Communications Director | mmjohnso@daemen.edu

AMHERST, N.Y. -- The Daemen University women's volleyball team hits the road again this weekend to play three matches over three days. The Wildcats will play a non-conference match on Friday against Post at 6 PM, then will return to East Coast Conference play with a pair of matches starting on Saturday at Mercy at noon, then playing at first year program St. Thomas Aquinas for the first time on Sunday at 11 AM.

A LOOK BACK AT LAST WEEK
The Wildcats won their only game of the week in a 3-0 sweep over longtime rival Roberts Wesleyan on Wednesday, Sept. 27, winning their 17th straight match over the Redhawks. A trio of Daemen hitters finished with double-digit kills in the win, with junior middle Amelia Armstrong (River Falls, Wisc.) leading all hitters with 14 kills, senior right side Giselle Giraud (Orlando, Fla.) totaling 11 kills on the day and sophomore outside hitter Nahirka Malpica (Caguas, P.R.) adding 10 kills in the victory over the Redhawks. Senior setter Olivia Alessi (East Aurora, N.Y.) ran the Wildcat offense with 38 assists (12.67 assists/set) and 11 digs for her second straight double-double of the year. Daemen out-killed Roberts 49 to 29 on the night and hit at a .387 clip while holding the Redhawks to a .179 hitting percentage.

ECC DOMINANCE
With their win over Roberts Wesleyan, the Wildcats have won 26 straight regular season conference matches, a streak that dates back to Nov. 10, 2019. Daemen sits atop the ECC as the only undefeated team in the league.

STAT CATS
The Wildcats lead the ECC with 718 total kills, averaging 13.30 kills per set for a league-high .219 hitting percentage. Daemen leads all ECC teams with 11.87 assists/set (641 total assists), 16.56 digs per set with 894 total digs, and 118 total service aces on the year. Senior libero Jasmine Brundage (East Aurora, N.Y.) leads the league with 245 total digs for a league-high 5.21 digs per set. Giraud leads the league with a .380 hitting percentage, and ranks fifth in the ECC with 160 total kills. Koerber ranks third in the ECC with 3.85 kills per set and fourth with 177 total kills on the year, while ranking third with 0.57 aces per set. Senior setter Dunja Masic (McHenry, Ill.) ranks fifth in the league with 8.14 assists per set.

UP NEXT
The Wildcats will travel to crosstown rival D'Youville on Thursday, Oct. 12 for a 6 PM match.

THE EAGLES
After posting a 10-20 record in the 2022 season, Post comes into Friday night's matchup 2-13 on the year, losing the first seven matches of the year. The Eagles picked up Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) wins over Bloomfield and Caldwell, but after getting their last victory on Sept. 19, Post is on a four match losing streak. Averaging 10.6 kills per set, the Eagles are led offensively by junior outside hitter Caley Harper with 171 kills on the year. Junior middle hitter Hannah Brandt has 21 of Post's 51.5 total blocks on the season, and ranks second on the team with 113 kills.

SERIES HISTORY
The Wildcats own a 2-1 series record over the Eagles, with the last meeting ending in a 3-0 victory at Post on Sept. 9, 2018.

THE MAVERICKS
Mercy put together a solid 13-7 season with a 6-4 conference record in 2022, with their campaign ending in the ECC Tournament after falling to Daemen 3-0 in the semifinals. The Mavs come into Saturday's match with a 7-2 overall record and a 2-1 ECC record, beating Roberts Wesleyan and Molloy in 3-1 matches but falling to Queens 1-3 last Saturday. Having played just nine matches and 31 sets on the year, Mercy has the second least total kills in the league (389), but they rank second behind the Wildcats with 12.55 kills per set and average 16.5 points per set. Senior outside hitter Larissa Schneid, who earned First Team All-ECC in 2022, leads the team with 121 kills, averaging 3.90 kills/set which ranks second in the league. 2022 Second Team All-ECC senior setter Yarianne Gonzalez leads the ECC with 10.06 assists per set, and ranks four with 0.55 aces per set on the year. Graduate student middle blocker Julia Pomerleau, who earned Second Team All-ECC last season, leads the Mavs at the net with 25 of their 43 total blocks and ranks fourth in the league with 0.81 blocks/set.

SERIES HISTORY
In the ten year history between these two programs, Daemen owns a 16-3 all-time record over Mercy. The Wildcats have won five straight matches, with their last loss to the Mavs coming in November of 2019 that snapped a nine-match win streak for Daemen.

THE SPARTANS
Playing in their first season, St. Thomas Aquinas comes into the year with a 2-7 record and is still winless, 0-3, in ECC play. STAC picked up their first win as a program against Bowie State on Friday, Sept. 8 in a 3-2 thriller, and earned their second win at home on Sept. 15 with a 3-1 win against Lincoln. Since then, the Spartans have lost four straight matches to Felician, Roberts Wesleyan, Queens and Molloy. 6-foot-1 junior right side Jaizahir Marrero-George leads the league with 4.31 kills per set, and leads STAC on the season with 138 total kills. She is the only Spartan to tally triple-digit kills this season. Junior setter Lea Venghaus sits atop the ECC with 0.59 service aces per set on the year.

SERIES HISTORY
This marks the first time that Daemen and St. Thomas Aquinas meet on the court.

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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