ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The Daemen University women's volleyball team topped defeated Roberts Wesleyan 3-1 (25-17, 24-26, 25-16, 25-19) on Sunday afternoon to improve to 13-10 overall and 6-4 in East Coast Conference play while dropping the Redhawks to 3-20 and 1-8 in ECC. The Wildcats finished with a season-high 56 kills and hit .259 while holding Roberts Wesleyan to 41 kills and a .140 hitting percentage. Daemen has recorded at least 13 service aces in two consecutive matches.
After the Redhawks took the first three points of the first set, the Wildcats answered with kills from
Avery Craig (Tomball, Tex.) and back-to-back
Jarielys Giraud aces to move ahead 5-3. Daemen took a 12-10 lead off kills by
Mina Faw (Wiliamsburg, Va.),
Olivia Urbon (Chicago, Ill.) and
Molly Ryan (Orchard Park, N.Y.), then later pushed the margin to 14-11 on an
Etana Murray (Binghamton, N.Y.) kill and Urbon ace. The Wildcats continued the run, getting two more Craig kills during the stretch, and closed the set with consecutive aces by
Vera Tops (Senigallia, Italy) aces and a set-winning kill from
Jolie Faw (Williamsburg, Va.) to earn a 25-17 win.
The second set stayed tight early, with Craig and
Mina Faw providing kills and Craig serving an ace as the Wildcats moved in front 8-7. The Redhawks answered with five straight points to go ahead 12-8, and later held a 17-11 edge. The Wildcats pulled within 17-15 behind an ace from
Jarielys Giraud (Orlando, Fla.) and a block by
Jolie Faw and Craig, but Roberts Wesleyan pushed back to 24-22. A kill from
Nicole Giardina (Midland, Mich.) and Urbon's ace tied the set at 24-24, but Roberts Wesleyan took the final two points to win the set 26-24 and tie the match up at 1-1.
The Wildcats scored the first three points of the third set on back-to-back Giraud service aces and a kill from
Maddie Schamaun (Rockville, Md.). The Wildcats moved back in front with kills from
Mina Faw and Amelia Gonzalez (Juana Diaz, P.R.) and a block from Gonzalez-
Mina Faw block to go up 8-4 and maintained the lead through the middle of the set. After klils from Urbon helped the Wildcats reach 19-15, Daemen took the set by scoring six straight points, including a Schamaun ace and kills by Urbon, Murray and
Payton Gaylor (Bowmanville, Ont.), to win 25-16.
Craig served the Wildcats through an early push in the fourth set, with Gonzalez putting down consecutive kills and adding a block as the Wildcats moved in front 9-3. The Wildcats kept building from there, using kills by Urbon, Murray and Gaylor and a block by Murray and
Dayden Dyess (Wylie, Tex.) to reach 20-6. The Redhawks would score seven straight and later cut the deficit to 24-19 before Gonzalez closed the set with a kill for a 25-19 Wildcats win.
IMPACT PLAYERS
- Craig totaled 15 kills and a season-high 20 digs, adding two block assists and an ace for a match-high 17 points.
- Urbon finished with nine kills and just two errors on 16 attacks for a .438 hitting percentage, chipping in three aces and eight digs.
- Giraud posted a team and season-high five aces, 10 digs and three assists.
- Gonzalez totaled seven kills with no errors on 12 attacks to hit at a .583 clip, adding three blocks and three digs.
- Schamaun finished with 25 assists, one ace and five digs.
- Ryan chipped in 23 assists, five digs and two kills.
UP NEXT
The Wildcats will play their final two matches of the regular season at Lumsden Gymnasium next weekend, hosting Molloy on Saturday (11 AM) and Queens on Sunday (11 AM). Daemen will honor their four seniors ahead of Sunday's match for Senior Day celebrations.
