Amherst, N.Y. – The Wildcats are going ring chasing! Daemen University women's volleyball is headed back to the East Coast Conference championship game after a stellar 3-0 (25-17, 25-15, 25-18) shut out over the Mercy Mavericks. In the first of two semifinal matches on Friday night, the Wildcats got back to their sweeping ways, swiftly handling Mercy to punch their ticket to the ECC Championship match on Saturday evening. Daemen has swept their ECC Championship semifinal opponent for the second straight season (the top-seeded Wildcats beat Molloy 3-0 in the 2021 ECC semifinals).
The Wildcats out-killed Mercy 43-25 and finished with a .241 hitting percentage in the match. First Team All-ECC outside hitter Sam Logan (Eden, N.Y.) led all hitters on the night, totaling 12 kills with just one error. Mercy's Larissa Schneid led the way for the Mavericks with eight kills in the match.
The Wildcats will face the winner of Queens and Molloy in the ECC Championship match on Saturday at 5 PM at Lumsden Gym.
IMPACT PLAYERS
- Sam Logan notched her 11th double-double of the year with 12 kills (4.0 kills/set) for a .355 hitting percentage and added 14 digs in the victory. Logan finished with two aces and two solo blocks for her first multi-block game of the season.
- ECC Player of the Year Maggie Burns (Louisville, Ky.) tallied 10 kills (3.33 kills/set) and 12 digs (4.0 digs/set) for her ninth double-double of the season. The senior outside hitter added a season-high three service aces in the semifinal win.
- First Team All-ECC middle blocker Vanessa Kuliga (Glenview, Ill.) totaled eight kills (2.66 kills/set) with just one error for a .467 hitting percentage. The junior finished with two total blocks (one solo, one assisted) and six digs.
- ECC Co-Setter of the Year Olivia Alessi (East Aurora, N.Y.) finished with 35 assists (11.66 assists/set), and finished one dig shy of added her sixth double-double of the year, finishing with nine digs on the day. She added two kills to her stat line.
- Second Team All-ECC Jasmine Brundage (East Aurora, N.Y.) picked up 14 digs (4.66 digs/set) and added a service ace.
- Junior outside hitter Giselle Giraud (Orlando, Fla.) finished with six kills (2.0 kills/set) for a .267 hitting percentage, and added two assisted blocks for her fifth multi-block game of the year.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- The Wildcats and Mavericks opened the match in a back-and-forth affair, but after tying the game at nine, Daemen took advantage of attack errors made by Mercy and went on a 7-0 run that would ultimately be the difference in the set.
- Kuliga tallied five kills and zero errors for a .625 hitting percentage in the first set.
- The Wildcats out-killed Mercy 16-4 in the second set. Logan and Burns combined for nine of Daemen's 16 kills.
- Daemen trailed 7-3 early in the third set but then went on 8-2 run to regain control of the lead and shift momentum.
- Burns tallied four kills in each of the final two sets.
- The Wildcats finished with eight service aces on the day. Burns, Logan and senior defensive specialist Mickaley Monahan (Saline, Mich.) all served up multiple aces in the win.
- Daemen dominated in every facet on the day. The Wildcats out-killed, out-aced, out-blocked, out-assisted, and out-dug the Mavericks in the win.
GAME NOTES
- This was the third time the Wildcats and Mavericks have played since Oct. 8, with the last meeting being on Saturday in the ECC regular season finale. This was Daemen's first match against Mercy this season that ended in a 3-0 sweep.
- Logan is now just 24 kills away from becoming the 10th player in program history to total 1,000 career kills.
UP NEXT
Top-seed Daemen will face the winner of the second ECC Semifinal game between Queens and Molloy. The Wildcats and either the Knights or Lions will square off on Saturday at 5 PM in Lumsden Gymnasium for the ECC Tournament title and an automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament.
Provided by the Daemen Sports Information Department.
