Geoff Schneider

Men's Volleyball Hosts St. Francis Brooklyn In Key NEC Match Sunday

2/25/2023 11:36:00 AM

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

Match #11
St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers (4-5, 1-0 NEC) vs. Daemen Wildcats (9-1, 4-0 NEC)
Date: Sunday, Feb. 26
Time: 12 p.m.
Location: Amherst, N.Y. | Lumsden Gymnasium
LIVE VIDEO: via NEC Front Row / LIVE STATS: via Daemen Athletics / TICKETS: vis Daemen Athletics

HOME SWEEP HOME
Daemen plays the second of four-straight home matches when it hosts St. Francis Brooklyn in a key Northeast Conference match Sunday (Feb. 26). St. Francis Brooklyn was voted second in the NEC preseason poll, while Daemen was picked fourth. The Wildcats are 4-0 at Lumsden Gymnasium this season and have won 13-straight home matches dating back to last season. Eight of the 13-straight home wins have been by a 3-0 score. Daemen is 16-1 at home since the start of the 2021 season. St. Francis Brooklyn is the last team to defeat Daemen at Lumsden Gymnasium--and the only team to defeat the Wildcats at home since the start of the 2021 season--posting a 3-2 in at Lumsden on Jan. 29, 2022.

WILDCATS COMPLETE SEASON SWEEP OF D'YOUVILLE
Daemen remained unbeaten in Northeast Conference play and completed the season sweep of crosstown rival D'Youville following a 3-1 victory over the Saints Thursday night at Lumsden Gym. The Wildcats won their eighth straight match to moved to 9-1 overall and 4-0 in the league. 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 nine kills. 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. Daemen also registered a season-high 12 service aces. Freshman defensive specialist Kyle Zelasko (West Seneca, N.Y.) put together a solid outing, finishing with a team-high 14 points. Zelasko tallied eight kills, while tallying career-highs in service aces (6) and digs (10). Senior outside hitter Zach Schneider (Lockport, N.Y.), this week's NEC Player of the Week, totaled eight kills on 19 attacks for a .368 hitting percentage. Schneider also tallied six digs and two solo blocks. Heavy hitter Jake Couzens (Hamburg, N.Y.) finished with seven kills and just one error for a .462 hitting percentage.

FOR THE RECORD
Senior Sean Califf (Oak Park, Ill.) established a new program record for assists during a five-set match against Sacred Heart on Sunday. He posted a career-high 57 assists in the 3-2 win, breaking the previous record of 54 set by current teammate Michael Krueger (Canonsburg, Pa.) vs. Lincoln Memorial on Feb. 9, 2020.

50 WINS FOR GLEASON
Head coach Don Gleason posted his 50th career win during Daemen's 3-0 at D'Youville on Feb. 10. Gleason has posted a 53-31 record in his five seasons as head coach.

STAT CATS
Through matches played Feb. 24th, Daemen ranks atop the NEC in hitting percentage (.295), lowest opponent hitting percentage (.180), kills (11.89 kills per set), service aces (2.16 aces per set) and fewest opponent service aces (0.89 per set). Daemen also ranks second in the conference in blocks per set (1.97) and third in assists (10.49 assists per set). Schneider ranks second in the league in points (4.06 points/set), fourth in kills (3.31 kills/per set) and fifth in both service aces per set (0.41) and hitting percentage (.376). Junior opposite Cameron Milligan (Pavilion, N.Y.) ranks seventh in the NEC in points (3.55 points/set) and second in aces (0.45 aces/set). Califf ranks third in the conference in assists (8.75 assists/set) and sixth in digs (1.97 digs/set). Moffitt ranks first in hitting percentage (.536) and ninth in blocks (0.77 blocks/set), while freshman Kyle Zelasko (West Seneca, N.Y.) leads the league in service aces per set (0.47).

IMPRESSIVE START
Four of Daemen's nine wins this season have been perfect 3-0 Wildcat sweeps, including Daemen's first-ever NEC game played at two weeks ago at D'Youville. The Wildcats are averaging 11.9 kills per set compared to just 9.7 for their opponents, and are hitting with a .295 hitting percentage compared to .180 for opponents on the season. Six Wildcat players have notched 20+ kills on the season. The dynamic duo of Milligan and Schneider account for 253 of Daemen's 440 total kills on the season, and the pair of heavy hitters have also accounted for 28 of Daemen's 80 total aces on the year.

OFF THE BLOCK POLL
The Wildcats remain ranked sixth in the the Off The Block Division II Coaches Poll for week seven of the 2023 season, as released earlier today (Feb. 22). Off The Block is a website solely dedicated to the coverage of collegiate men's volleyball, and conducts a Division II national poll every Wednesday. Daemen has been included in 18 straight OTB polls.

UP NEXT
The Wildcats are idle until March 4 when they host Alderson Broaddus in the non-league match.

SCOUTING THE TERRIERS
St. Francis Brooklyn opened the year with three straight wins, but has lost five of its last six matches--including setbacks to nationally-ranked Lewis and Loyola-Chicago. The Terriers snapped a five game losing streak and opened their NEC schedule with a 3-1 win over FDU last weekend. St. Francis Brooklyn plays at D'Youville Saturday before taking on Daemen Sunday. On the season, the Terriers are averaging 11.2 kills per set and have posted a .229 hitting percentage. The Terriers are also averaging of 10.1 assists/set and 1.6 blocks/set. St. Francis Brooklyn was a member of the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) last year and posted a 10-15 overall record and a 4-12 league record. A total of 12 players return from last year, including senior outside/libero Nicola Iannelli who collected second team All-EIVA honors last year. Senior Bartek Zielinski and freshman Patrick Rogers have paced the offense thus far. The 6-5 Zielinskli ranks fourth in the league in hitting percentage (.380), has posted a team-high 71 kills (2.96 per set) and is tied for the team lead in blocks (15). Rogers missed the first four games of the year, but has racked up 61 kills (3.59 per set) over the past five matches and ranks second among the NEC leaders in kills per set. Junior Matt Mongin has posted a team-high 172 assists (7.82 per set), while Iannelli leads the team and ranks second in the league in digs per set (2.58).

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. ST. FRANCIS BROOKLYN
Series Record: 3-1 Daemen
Record at Lumsden: 1-1
Last Meeting: SFB 3, Daemen 2 | Jan. 29, 2022 | Amherst, N.Y.

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.

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