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Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
Fearless, Integrity, Effort, Respect, Commitment, Excitement
MVB_Kyle Zelasko kill 2023 vs DYC
Geoff Schneider
1
D'Youville DYO 3-6,0-4 NEC
3
Winner Daemen Daemen 9-1,4-0 NEC
D'Youville DYO
3-6,0-4 NEC
1
Final
3
Daemen Daemen
9-1,4-0 NEC
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
D'Youville DYO 13 13 25 19 (1)
Daemen Daemen 25 25 21 25 (3)

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

Wildcats Remain Undefeated In Northeast Conference Play, Top D'Youville 3-1 On Thursday

Daemen Tallies Eighth Straight Win

AMHERST, N.Y. – Home, sweet home! The Daemen University men's volleyball team picked up their fourth home victory of the season with a 3-1 (25-13, 25-13, 21-25, 25-19) win against D'Youville on Thursday night. The Wildcats win their eighth straight match to move to 9-1 on the season and remain undefeated (4-0) in Northeast Conference play, while dropping the Saints to 3-6 overall and winless (0-4) in NEC.
 
The Wildcats put together a balanced attack in the match, with five players tallying seven or more kills against the Saints. Daemen middle hitter Henry Moffitt (Sydney, Australia) led the Wildcats on the floor with 9 kills (2.25 kills per set). The Cats finished the match with 43 kills and just 14 attack errors for a .293 hitting percentage. D'Youville narrowly out-killed Daemen, totaling 44 kills to finish with a .204 hitting percentage. D'Youville's Kacper Taudul finished with a match-high 19 kills and 20 points. 

Daemen returns to Lumsden Gymnasium on Sunday for a noon match against St. Francis Brooklyn. The Terriers are the last team to hand the Wildcats a loss at home. 

IMPACT PLAYERS
  • Freshman defensive specialist Kyle Zelasko (West Seneca, N.Y.) put together a solid outing against the Saints, finishing with a team-high 14 points. Zelasko tallied 8 kills (2.0 kills/set) for a .158 hitting percentage, while tallying career-high's in service aces (6) and digs (10). 
  • Senior outside hitter Zach Schneider (Lockport, N.Y.), this week's NEC Player of the Week, totaled 8 kills (2.0 kills/set) on 19 attacks for a .368 hitting percentage. Schneider tallied six digs and two solo blocks. 
  • Heavy hitter opposite Jake Couzens (Hamburg, N.Y.) finished with 7 kills (1.75 kills/set) with just one error for a .462 hitting percentage. The senior added an ace, a solo block, two assisted blocks and two digs to his stat line.
  • Junior opposite Cameron Milligan (Pavilion, N.Y.) totaled 7 kills (1.75 kills/set), four ace, five digs, a solo block and an assisted block for 12.5 points. 
  • Senior Sean Califf (Oak Park, Ill.) and graduate student Michael Krueger (Canonsburg, Pa.) split setting duties tonight, with Califf finishing with 24 assists (8.0 assists/set) six digs and three kills, while Krueger tallied 11 assists and a kill.  
GAME NOTES
  • Daemen is 4-0 at home on the year and have won 13 straight matches at Lumsden Gymnasium, a stretch that dates back to Jan. 29, 2022.
  • The Wildcats have beaten the Saints in eight straight meetings.
  • Daemen swiftly took the first set 25-13. The Wildcats out-killed D'Youville 11 to 6 in the first set for a .333 hitting percentage while holding the Saints to just 0.42.
  • Couzens was a perfect three for three in first-set kills for a 1.00 hitting percentage. Zelasko, Moffitt and Milligan each tallied two kills apiece in the first set.
  • Daemen put together a 25-13 second set, holding the Saints to a -0.74 hitting percentage while hitting at a .286 percent in the set. The Cats tallied nine kills in the second.
  • The Wildcats totaled five service aces in the second set. After totaling two aces in the first, Zelasko led the way at the line for the Cats in the second with three aces.
  • Zelasko totaled four second-set kills.
  • D'Youville came out hot in the third set and gave the Wildcats a tough time. After trading points to open up the set, the Saints put together a 4-0 stretch that they carried through the third set. D'Youville led by as much as 24-18, but the Wildcats then went on a four-point run on D'Youville's setpoint to make it 24-21. The Saints were able to close out the third 25-21 and force a fourth set.
  • The Saints totaled 18 third set kills for a .552 hitting percentage.
  • Much like the third set, the Wildcats and Saints traded points to open up the fourth. D'Youville brought the set to within one point, 15-14, but the Wildcats turned up the intensity, going on a 5-1 run to take a 20-15 lead. The Saints kept fighting but could never close the gap. Daemen won the fourth set 25-19.
  • The Wildcats finished with 12 kills and just three errors on 27 attacks for a .333 hitting percentage in the fourth set. 
  • Daemen totaled three blocks in the fourth and finished with 11 total blocks in the match. 
  • The Wildcats totaled a season-high 12 service aces. Four Daemen players recorded aces, with Zelasko leading the way with 6 on the night.
  • After posting back-to-back matches with 22 service errors, the Wildcats cut down at the errors from the service line, finishing with just 11 service errors. 
  • The Wildcats were predicted to finish fourth in the conference in the NEC preseason poll. 
  • Daemen joined the NEC for the conference's first ever men's volleyball season in 2023. The Wildcats and Saints are two of eight teams playing in the NEC's inaugural season. 
  • Daemen is ranked sixth in in the latest Off The Block Division II Coaches Poll of the 2023 season.
  • The Wildcats are now 44-9 in their last 53 matches, a span that dates back to February 2020.
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 men's volleyball program on Twitter and Instagram at @DaemenMVB.
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