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Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
Fearless, Integrity, Effort, Respect, Commitment, Excitement
MVB senior night
0
Merrimack Merri 9-14,2-9 NEC
3
Winner Daemen Daemen 17-4,11-1 NEC
Merrimack Merri
9-14,2-9 NEC
0
Final
3
Daemen Daemen
17-4,11-1 NEC
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
Merrimack Merri 20 18 16 (0)
Daemen Daemen 25 25 25 (3)

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

Home Sweep Home! Men's Volleyball Tops Merrimack 3-0 On Senior Night

AMHERST, N.Y. -- HOW SWEEP IT IS!! The Daemen University men's volleyball team garnered their eighth sweep of the season, and sixth sweep at home, with a 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-16) Senior Night victory over Merrimack College on Saturday afternoon. With the win, Daemen moves to 17-4 overall and 11-1 in Northeast Conference play, while the Warriors drop to 9-14 overall and 3-9 in NEC action. Eight Wildcats recorded kills in the win, with senior outside hitter Zach Schneider (Lockport, N.Y.) leading all players on the day with his 11-kill performance.

Daemen honored four Wildcats playing in their last regular season home match this afternoon, and it was a big time senior party on the court. Middle hitter Henry Moffitt (Sydney, Australia) totaled seven kills on 10 attacks for a .500 hitting percentage and led all players on the court with four blocks. Opposite/middle Jake Couzens (Hamburg, N.Y.) finished with five kills on 10 attacks for a .300 hitting percentage, and added an ace and two assisted blocks to his stat line today. Libero Ryan Parker (Fairport, N.Y.) totaled seven digs and an assist in the win. Outside hitter Matthew Garry (Lancaster, N.Y.) got the start today, and finished with two digs, one block and two kills on six attacks, including the match-winning kill that sent Lumsden Gymnasium erupting in cheers. 

The Wildcats will play their final pair of regular season matches next weekend. Daemen will first take on Fairleigh Dickinson on Friday at 5 PM, then travel to Saint Francis for a 4 PM match on Saturday where they will look to avenge March 25's 2-3 home loss to the Red Flash which snapped Daemen's 13-match home win streak, the longest active win streak in the country at the time. 

IMPACT PLAYERS
  • For the 16th match this season, Zach Schneider tallied double-digit kills. The senior finished with 11 kills for a .333 hitting percentage, while adding seven digs and three assisted blocks for a match-high 12.5 points.
  • Junior opposite Cameron Milligan (Pavilion, N.Y.) finished with eight kills with just one error on 19 attacks for a .368 hitting percentage, and scooped up four digs, an ace and an assisted block. 
  • Senior setter Sean Califf (Oak Park, Ill.) totaled 25 assists (8.33 assists/set) along with three digs, two kills, an ace and a solo block. 
GAME NOTES
  • Today's match marked just the second ever meeting between Daemen and Merrimack. The Wildcats won the first ever matchup, 3-2, on Feb. 17 in North Andover, Mass.
  • After trading points to open up the first set, Daemen went on an 8-2 run to put up a nice lead, and held onto that throughout the rest of the set. The Wildcats took the first set, 25-20, even after posting 11 kills for a .192 hitting percentage.
  • Merrimack's errors were their downfall in the first set, committing five service errors and four attack errors in the set.
  • After stopping a short run by Merrimack to open up the set, the Wildcats excelled in the second, handling the Warriors 25-18. The Wildcats knocked down 13 kills for a .310 hitting percentage and racked up four blocks. 
  • Just like the first two sets, the Wildcats and Warriors kept it close to begin the third set. But Daemen's 10-2 run in the middle of the set was too much to come back from. Daemen would win five of the last six points in the set, including Garry's big match-point kill, to take the third set 25-16 and end the match.
  • Daemen finished with an impressive 13 blocks compared to just two for the Warriors. Seven Wildcats recorded blocks in the match, with Moffitt leading the way at the net with four, Schneider tallying three, Couzens with two, and Kyle Zelasko (West Seneca, N.Y.), Milligan, Califf and Garry each touting one block a piece. 
  • The Wildcats clinched a berth in the inaugural NEC Championship Tournament last weekend after taking down Long Island University 3-2 on Friday night. The Wildcats moved to sole possession of first place in the conference after topping the Sharks. 
  • With this weekend's wins, Daemen remains squarely in first place in the NEC with an 11-1 overall record. Saint Francis, the only team to beat the Wildcats in conference play, is right on their heels with a 10-2 conference record. 
  • Francis Brooklyn 3-2 in back-to-back five set wins.
  • Daemen accepted an invitation to join the Northeast Conference back in May, marking a significant stride for the program which has competed as an NCAA Division I-II independent since its inception in 2019. With support from the First Point Volleyball Foundation, the NEC announced men's volleyball as the league's 25th championship sport in September of 2021.
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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