AMHERST, N.Y. -- In another instant thriller against Mercy University, the top team in the East Coast Conference, the Daemen University women's volleyball team fell to the Mavericks in four sets, 1-3 (25-19, 18-25, 24-26 and 23-25), on Sunday afternoon. The Wildcats won the opening set and fought hard but dropped the next three sets to Mercy. With the loss, Daemen moves to 10-9 overall and 3-3 in ECC action while the Mavericks improve to 16-1 and remain undefeated (6-0) in conference play.
The Wildcats totaled 11 blocks in the match, exceeding their season average of 7.26. Senior middle blocker Amelia Gonzalez (Juana Diaz, P.R.) and sophomore outside hitter
Mina Faw (Williamsburg, Va.) led the way at the net with 3.5 and 3 total blocks, respectively. Daemen also hit 40+ kills for the 12th time this season, finishing with 45 as a team after six Wildcats recorded kills in the match.
Daemen took a 10-4 lead quick after four consecutive blocks from Gonzalez. The Wildcats kept their foot on the gas early on, pushing their advantage to 16-6 with three kills by
Payton Gaylor (Bowmanville, Ont.) in the middle of the set.
Audrey Johnson (Mequon, Wisc.) served up back-to-back aces and
Mina Faw and Gonzalez combined for a block to take a 21-9 lead. Mercy put together a 6-0 run to cut it to 21-15, but the Wildcats closed out the set with a kill from
Avery Craig (Tomball, Tex.) to take the first 25-19.
The Wildcats moved ahead 6-5 on a kill from Johnson early, and a pair of Gaylor kills put the Wildcats back in front 7-6 before Mercy tied it up. The Mavericks then scored four straight to go ahead 11-7, before an ace from
Maddie Schamaun (Rockville, Md.) ace helped the Wildcats get back to 11-9. Mercy pushed the margin to eight, 20-12, and despite a late Daemen push, the Mavericks tied the match up by posting a 25-18 second set.
The Wildcats traded points through the opening stretch, using kills from Johnson, Craig and
Jolie Faw along with a
Vera Tops (Senigallia, Italy) ace to take a 6-4 lead before Mercy pulled even at 6-6. The set stayed tight through the middle, as Tops' second ace helped the Wildcats move from a 12-10 deficit to a 13-12 lead, and
Peyton Lowes (Northville, Mich.) later served an ace for a 15-14 edge. Mercy later went ahead 20-18, but the Wildcats tied the set at 21-21 on kills by Craig and
Jolie Faw and moved in front 22-21 on another Tops ace. After a Mercy block put the Wildcats behind 23-22, a Mercy attack error and Craig's kill gave the Wildcats set point at 24-23, but the Mavs answered with three consecutive kills to close with a 26-24 set win.
The Wildcats worked back from behind on kills from
Mina Faw, Gaylor,
Jolie Faw and Craig, moving in front 7-6. Mercy later broke a 10-10 tie with four straight points, but the Wildcats answered with
Mina Faw's kill, a Mercy attack error and back-to-back Tops aces to tie it at 14-14. The set stayed level at 15, 17, 18, 19 and 20 before Mercy moved ahead 23-21, and the Wildcats pulled even again at 23-23 after a pair of errors from the Mavs. A kill gave Mercy set point, and a Mavericks block closed the set 25-23 to take the match 3-1.
IMPACT PLAYERS
- Craig led the Wildcats offensively with 11 kills, chipping in nine digs and two block assists for 12 points on the day.
- Gaylor totaled 10 kills and 2.5 total blocks -- one solo -- to lead Daemen with 12.5 points in the loss.
- Mina Faw finished with seven kills and a season-high six block assists.
- Jolie Faw (Williamsburg, Va.) notched seven kills and added two blocks and two assists.
- Gonzalez led the Wildcats with 3.5 total blocks off seven block assists and chipped in three kills.
- Tops posted a season-high six aces.
UP NEXT
The Wildcats will hit the road next weekend to play at Molloy (Saturday, Oct. 24) and Queens (Sunday, Oct. 25).
