Geoff Schneider

NEC Match Against Maryland Eastern Shore Up Next For Men's Volleyball

3/26/2026 2:49:00 PM

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

NEW FACES
The Daemen University men's volleyball team returns to Lumsden Gymnasium this weekend to play a pair of matches against NEC newcomer Maryland Eastern Shore at Lumsden Gymnasium. The Wildcats and Hawks will square off on Friday, March 27 at 6 PM and round out the weekend with a 2 PM match on Saturday, March 28. Daemen comes into the weekend with a .500 record, going 10-10 overall and 3-3 in NEC action while Maryland Eastern Shore is 12-7 on the year and 2-2 in NEC matches.

LAST WEEKEND
The Wildcats dropped both matches at Saint Francis last weekend. On Friday night, the Cats and Red Flash battled in a five-set thriller but Saint Francis was able to pull off the fifth set victory 2-3 (25-21, 27-29, 20-25, 27-25, 13-15). Daemen recorded 61 kills compared to Saint Francis' 53, but the Red Flash capitalized on seven service aces to secure the conference victory. Redshirt sophomore Patrick Mullen (Farmingdale, N.J.) finished with 15 kills with five digs for a team-high 16 points. Fifth year Maverick O'Neill (East Amherst, N.Y.) hit 10 kills for a .533 percentage, adding six blocks for 14 points on the night. Junior setter Jariel Giraud (Orlando, Fla.) contributed 48 assists, 10 digs and one block assist. On Saturday, the Wildcats fell 0-3 (25-22, 25-23, 25-21) after recording 42 kills and while hitting .337 in the match. Mullen led the Cats with 13 kills while hitting at a .346. Redshirt freshman Aidan White (Fairport, N.Y.) totaled 11 kills with a .476 hitting percentage. Redshirt senior Billy Wieberg (Grand Island, N.Y.) posted nine kills, seven digs and three blocks. Giraud finished with 34 assists and six digs.

STAT CATS
Daemen ranks second in the league in service aces (1.49/set), opponent digs (8.55/set), opponent blocks (1.73/set), and leads the NEC in opponent assists (10.23/set), and opponent kills (11.05/set) while ranking third in the conference in blocks (2.21/set) and opponent hitting percentage (.238). Mullen ranks fourth in the NEC in kills (3.55/set) and third in points (4.18/set). Maverick O'Neill (East Amherst, N.Y.) ranks fourth in the NEC in blocks (0.97/set) while Leicht is fifth is (0.91/set). Giraud is fifth in the league in assists (8.77/set) and 10th in digs (1.54/set), Zelasko is third in digs this season (1.99/set) while the tandem of Wieberg and Mullen are fifth (0.41/set) and sixth (0.35/set) in aces, respectively.

THE GAMES THAT COUNT
Since joining the NEC as an associate member ahead of the inaugural 2023 season, the Wildcats have competed at the top of the conference, going 28-17 in the regular season four years while compiling a 4-1 record in NEC postseason play. Daemen is the defending back-to-back NEC tournament champions, twice beating top-seeded Saint Francis at the Red Flash's home gym to earn the crown. With their second NEC tournament title last season, the Cats earned the conference's automatic bid to the National Collegiate Men's Volleyball Championship. The Wildcats are coming off a 4-4 record in NEC regular season play in 2025 in which they finished third in the conference.

CO-FAVORITES
Daemen was picked as the co-favorite in the 2026 NEC Men's Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Wildcats picked up three first-place votes, and finished tied with Saint Francis atop the poll. Daemen enters the 2026 campaign as the two-time defending NEC Tournament champions. LIU and FDU each received one first-place vote, and finished third and fourth, respectively, in the poll. New NEC members Manhattan and Maryland Eastern Shore occupied poll positions five and six, respectively, while D'Youville was picked seventh to round it out.

UP NEXT
The Wildcats will travel to New Jersey to play at FDU next weekend, facing the Knights on Friday, April 3 at 6 PM and Saturday, April 4 at 1 PM.

SCOUTING THE HAWKS
Playing in the programs first season of collegiate men's volleyball, Maryland Eastern Shore comes into this weekend with a 12-7 overall record and a 2-2 record in NEC play, sweeping D'Youville in their first meeting on Feb. 26-27 but falling in both matches at Saint Francis on March 13-14. Leading the league in points (16.02/set), hitting percentage (.302), kills (12.1/set), blocks (2.5/set), opponent digs (8.31/set), opponent blocks (1.41/set) and opponent hitting percentage (.200), UMES is led offensively by a trio of Hawks. Andre Mills (3.24 kills/set ranks fifth in NEC), Tristan Rowley (3.2 kills/set is seventh in NEC) and Chase Valentine (2.03 kills/set, .411 hitting percentage leads the league) lead Maryland Eastern Shore on the offensive end this season. Valentine's 1.28 blocks/set leads the league. This is the first time Daemen and Maryland Eastern Shore meet on the court.

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