Giselle Giraud and Amelia Armstrong pose for media day photos on August 21, 2024

Women's Volleyball Opens 2024 Season At UIndy Invitational

9/5/2024 9:32:00 AM

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

BACK ON THE COURT
The Daemen University women's volleyball team returns to the court to open up the 2024 season at the UIndy Volleyball Invitational hosted by the University of Indianapolis. The Wildcats will play four matches over the two day tournament, kicking off with their season opener on Friday, Sept. 6 in a 9 AM match against Indiana (Pa.) before they take on Kentucky Wesleyan on Friday at 3 PM. Daemen will wrap up the tournament on Saturday with a pair of matches against Maryville (9 AM) and Tiffin (3 PM).

2023 AT A GLANCE
Head coach Eli Irizarry returns for his third season at the helm after an impressive second season with the Wildcats. Under his direction, Daemen finished with an NCAA Division II-era (2015-present) record for wins with a 26-6 overall record and finished with an undefeated East Coast Conference record (12-0) for the third consecutive season. The Wildcats claimed their third consecutive ECC regular-season and tournament titles, and advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the sixth season where they played in the East Region championship match for the third time in program history. The Wildcats own a 35-match conference win streak dating back to Nov. 10, 2019. Irizarry's Wildcats have gone 46-12 over the past two seasons with a 22-0 record in ECC regular season play.

TOP OF THE POLLS
The Wildcats were picked to finish first in the 2024 ECC Preseason Coaches' Poll for the third consecutive year after the Wildcats took home their third straight ECC regular season and tournament titles. Daemen earned four of a possible seven first-place votes and totaled 45 points to top the preseason poll for the fourth time since 2019. Mercy University collected two first place votes and finished second in the poll with 40 points. Molloy University picked up the final first-place vote and landed third in the poll with 36 points. Queens College (26), St. Thomas Aquinas College (20), D'Youville University (19) and Roberts Wesleyan University (10) round out the poll.

WELCOME BACK
Daemen returns 10 players from last season, including 2023 ECC Libero of the Year and AVCA honorable mention All-America honoree Jasmine Brundage (East Aurora, N.Y.) and first team All-ECC right side Giselle Giraud (Orlando, Fla.). Playing in her fifth year at Daemen, Brundage is coming off a career year in which she led the league with 557 digs and 5.21 digs/set. The 5-foot-5 graduate student libero had 13 matches with at least 20 digs, including a season-high 34 in the regional championship match against Bentley and recorded her 1,000th career dig last season. Giraud returns for her third season as a Wildcat after posting a breakout year in 2023 in which she earned All-ECC honors for the first time. The 5-foot-11 right side started in 30 of Daemen's 32 matches and ranked second in the conference in hitting percentage (.361) and seventh in kills per set (3.13) while tallying 332 kills on the year. The Wildcats also welcome back senior middle Amelia Armstrong (River Falls, Wisc.) who ranked first on the team and seventh in the league with 0.73 blocks per set in 2023 and finished second on the team in total blocks (55) while contributing 125 kills. Senior right side Kate Ryan (Buffalo, N.Y.) had a breakout junior campaign where she posted a career-high 134 kills and finished with a .253 hitting percentage on the year. The Wildcats lost four starters from the 2023 season to graduation, setters Olivia Alessi and Dunja Masic, outside hitter Maggie Burns and middle blocker Vanessa Kuliga, along with 2023 ECC Rookie of the Year Charlotte Koerber who transferred after the season ended.

NEW FACES
The 2024 Daemen squad features seven newcomers, including two transfers with Division I experience. Outside hitter Abby Ryan (Orchard Park, N.Y.) comes to Daemen as a graduate student after playing four years of undergrad women's volleyball for Robert Morris where she appeared in 272 total sets over 83 matches and finished with 779 kills (2.86 kills/set), 42 aces, 546 digs (2.01 digs/set) and 47 blocks over four years. Setter Avery Dole (Summerfield, N.C.) transferred over from Canisius where she played in 27 matches over three seasons and totaled 441 assists (5.88 assists/set) and 147 digs (1.96 per set). Dole played in nine matches in 2023 and totaled 240 assists. (8.57/set). Irizarry brought in five freshmen in outside hitter Avery Craig (Tomball, Texas), defensive specialist Jarielys Giraud (Orlando, Fla.), middle hitter Vera Tops (Senigallia, Italy), outside hitter Olivia Urbon (Chicago, Ill.) and right side Payton Gaylor (Bowmanville, Ont.). With all-conference outside hitters Maggie Burns graduating and Charlotte Koerber transferring, the race for who will fill those spots is wide open for the newcomers this upcoming season

UP NEXT
The Wildcats will travel to Waltham, Mass. next weekend (Sept.13-14) where they will play three matches at the Sandy Hoffman Memorial Tournament hosted by Bentley University. Daemen will face New Haven on Friday at 4:30 PM. The Wildcats take on Bentley on Saturday at 1 PM in a rematch of the 2023 East Region Championship match, and will face American International at 3:30 PM on Saturday afternoon.

THE CRIMSON HAWKS
IUP comes into their 2024 season opener against the Wildcats after a successful 2023. The Crimson Hawks posted a 23-11 record and advanced to the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional championship where they fell to Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference rival Clarion in the Sweet 16. IUP led NCAA Division II in total team blocks (346.0) last season and ranked fifth nationally in blocks/set (2.68). 2023 AVCA All-American Lauren Valentic returns for her senior season after ranking first in DII in total blocks (175) and third nationally in blocks/set (1.39). Nyla Birch, who was named to the All-Atlantic Region team in 2023, posted over 100 blocks last season while leading the team and finishing 10th in the PSAC in total kills (329). Bailey Flowerdew (487 digs, 122 assists in 2023) and Kat Warpinski (757 assists, 46 aces in 2023) played key roles last season for the Crimson Hawks.

SERIES HISTORY
The Wildcats and Crimson Hawks are 1-1 all-time, with Daemen winning the last match up in 2019.

THE PANTHERS
Kentucky Wesleyan went 7-23 on the year last season and come into 2024 picked to finish fourth in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference South Division. The Panthers are without their top five hitters from 2023 but added six freshman in the off-season to come in with a new-look team. Setter Julia Kupper returns for her senior season after dishing out 916 assists (8.4/set) and 273 digs (2.17 digs/set) a season ago. She was solid from the baseline with a team-high 56 aces in 2023. Embry Burgess led the Panthers with 281 digs and held a .933 receiving percentage in 2023. This will be the first time the Wildcats and Panthers meet on the court.

THE SAINTS
Maryville enters their first tournament of the season this weekend. The Saints put together a historic season with an 17-12 overall record in 2023, going 7-6 in Great Lakes Valley Conference play and winning the program's first match in the GLVC Tournament with an upset over No. 3 seed Quincy in the tournament quarterfinals. Maryville would go on to fall to No. 13 Lewis in the semifinals of the tournament to end their season. The Saints return 16 players from last season's successful roster, including junior outsides Ella Brinkmann who led the team ith 363 kills (3.30 kills/set) and Caroline Glastetter who ranked second on the team with 228 kills (2.24 kills/set). Senior middle blocker Hanna Dressing led the way for the Saints with 68 blocks and added 147 total kills. This is the first time the Wildcats and Saints will play one another.

THE DRAGONS
Tiffin posted an 18-14 overall record in the 2023 season and advanced to the Great Midwest Athletic Conference semifinals where they fell to Ohio Dominican to end the year. The Dragons returns 15 players from last season, including senior right side Kenedi Goon who led the team in kills (311) and ranked third in blocks (115). Junior middle Kaylee Freund totaled 147 blocks and posted 183 kills in 2023. Senior outside/defensive specialist/setter Addison Conti led the Saints with 816 assists (6.63 assists/set) and 46 aces while adding 134 kills, 285 digs and 33 blocks a season ago.

SERIES HISTORY
The Wildcats own a 1-0 record over the Dragons in the sole match up in 2001.

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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