EDISON, NJ (Sept. 19, 2022) – Fairfield swept Canisius and Niagara while Marist swept Manhattan and Iona to go a perfect 2-0 in the opening weekend of MAAC Volleyball conference action. Canisius, Iona, Niagara, Rider, and Siena also picked up wins.  
 
Saturday, September 17
Fairfield (7-5, 1-0 MAAC) – 3 | Canisius (2-8, 0-1 MAAC) – 0
Koessler Athletic Center | BUFFALO, NY
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Fairfield Recap
Canisius Recap
 
KJ Johnson put down 15 kills and all five primary hitters swung at a clip over .400 as Fairfield University Volleyball swept host Canisius, 3-0, in the 2022 MAAC opener on Saturday in Buffalo. Blakely Montgomery dished out 33 assists to guide the Stags to a season-high .402 hitting percentage. Johnson's 15 kills came on .406 hitting for the reigning MAAC Player of the Year. She fell just short of a double-double with nine digs and also contributed to the scoring with two aces and a pair of block assists. In the middle, Ella Gardiner added nine kills at a .412 clip and Sara Daniels had five kills on 11 errorless swings for a .455 percentage. Defensively, Kyla Berg led the effort with 20 digs donning the libero jersey. In addition to Johnson's nine digs, Montgomery notched eight and Haut posted seven. At the net, Johnson and Montgomery each got a piece of two blocks, with Daniels and Gardiner both playing a part in one rejection. All told, the Stags limited Canisius to a .200 hitting percentage. The Griffs were led by 15 kills from Taylor Baldwin and seven by Ella Loussia. Ella Bourque dished out 29 assists for Canisius, and Bree Long had a team-leading 17 digs.
 
Iona (6-4, 1-0 MAAC) – 3 | Siena (2-8, 0-1 MAAC) – 0
UHY Center | LOUDONVILLE, NY
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Iona Recap
Siena Recap
 
The Iona University volleyball team earned a three-set road victory (25-23, 25-22, 26-24) over Siena in the MAAC opener. The Gaels came up big in the later stages of all three-sets with Hope Matschner leading the way defensively, pouring in a match-high 26 digs. Both teams exchanged min-runs in a back-and-forth third set, and a 4-0 run gave Iona a 9-5 lead. Kills from Mackenzie Wiggins and Morgan Madasz kept the lead at four but Siena rattled off an 8-4 stretch to deadlock the frame at 20. The Gaels responded winning the next four points on kills from Madasz and Wiggins and back-to-back aces from Greta Stjade. However, Siena managed to fight off four match points to bring the set to its 10th and final tie as Iona answered, winning the final two points on two errors from Siena, to take the set and earn the road victory. Tamara Pichardo poured in a team-high 21 assists and Samantha Juran tallied 13 in the win. Fleur Wiersma led the Gaels with 9 kills with Madasz finished with 8, both hitting an efficient .400 and.438 respectively. Elena Bianchi finished with a season-high 6 kills while Jen Soto and Wiggins both finished with five kills and Stjade tallied four to round out the offensive attack for Iona. Matschner recorded a match-best 26 digs bringing her up to 244 through Iona's first 10 matches.
 
Marist (5-6, 1-0 MAAC) – 3 | Manhattan (0-8, 0-1 MAAC) – 0
McCann Arena | POUGHKEEPSIE, NY
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Marist Recap
Manhattan Recap
 
The Marist volleyball team defeated Manhattan, 3-0, in the MAAC conference opener on Saturday at McCann Arena. Marist started on a tear, taking the first set 25-8 behind a hot start of six straight points. The second set was very similar as Marist took that one with a commanding 25-6 win. McKinley Fox was on fire with 12 straight serves, all leading to a Marist point. The third set saw a change as Manhattan started fighting back, getting as close as 15-11 by the media break. Marist managed to put it away, 25-17, behind a solid performance from Alyssa White and Jordan Newblatt. Sasha Van der Merwe had a team-high and match-high of 12 kills. White led the team and game in blocks with five while Fox led both teams with 25 assists. Morgan Owens led the way with 17 digs, a match high.
 
Niagara (3-7, 1-0 MAAC) – 3 | Quinnipiac (1-7, 0-1 MAAC) – 1
Gallagher Center | NIAGARA UNIVERSITY, NY
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Niagara Recap
Quinnipiac Recap
 
Niagara picked up a four-set win over Quinnipiac on Saturday afternoon to start MAAC play with a win. The Purple Eagles dropped the first set, 16-25, and then went on to win the next three, 27-25, 25-23, and 25-19. Trailing after the first set, the Purple Eagles again found themselves in a 17-11 hole in the second set before they would go on an 7-2 run to make it a 19-18 game in favor of the Bobcats. During the burst, Kinga Wronska, Allie Simpson and Laryssa Imbuzeiro would record kills, while Quinnipiac had multiple errors to help NU get within one. A Wronska kill would tie the game at 23-23, followed by a point for the Bobcats to give them set point. A NU timeout would result in back-to-back points for NU, giving the Purple Eagles a 25-24 lead. After QU tied it at 25 Niagara would get a kill from Wronska followed by an attack error from the Bobcats to give the set to NU and complete the comeback set win. Wronska finished the match with a double-double, the first of her career, with 16 kills and 15 digs. Lexi Bapst also finished with a double-double, recording 10 kills and 15 digs.
 
Rider (3-8, 1-0 MAAC) – 3 | Saint Peter’s (0-13, 0-1 MAAC) – 1
Alumni Gymnasium | LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ
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Rider Recap
Saint Peter’s Recap
 
The Rider University volleyball team opened MAAC play with a strong effort in Alumni Gym Saturday afternoon, defeating Saint Peter's in four sets (23-25, 25-13, 25-23, 25-18). Tied 8-8 in the opening set, the Peacocks scored six-straight points, including a trio of service aces, to open up a lead. Down 22-19, Rider made a stand scoring four-straight points on the serve of Molly Strah to regain the lead at 23-22, but three straight points by the Peacocks closed out the first set and gave Saint Peter’s their first set win of the season. The Broncs fired back in set two, starting 12-for-12 in sideout opportunities and finishing at 92% for the set. Leading 20-13, Rider ended the set with five-straight points including a pair of kills by Jenna Amaro. Morgan Romano finished with double-digit kills for the seventh time this season, finishing with a team-high 12. She added a team-high 17 digs for her second double-double of the season. Amaro also had 12 kills, her second time this season in double figures. Tori Schrader was the third Bronc with 12 kills, reaching double-digit kills for the second-straight match, while Keegan O'Connor had 12 digs.
 
Sunday, September 18
Canisius (3-8, 1-1 MAAC) – 3 | Quinnipiac (1-8, 0-2 MAAC) – 2
Koessler Athletic Center | BUFFALO, NY
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Canisius Recap
Quinnipiac Recap
 
Led by 29 kills from outside hitter Taylor Baldwin, the Canisius volleyball team defeated Quinnipiac, 3-2, in MAAC volleyball action on Sunday at the Koessler Athletic Center. The Golden Griffins won with scores of 25-15, 20-25, 20-25, 25-23, and 15-7 across five sets. The Griffs were white hot out of the gate, opening the match on a 9-2 run led by kills from Baldwin and senior outside hitter Ella Loussia. Even with a slight Bobcat spurt in the middle of the set, a 7-2 run coupled with a 3-0 stretch by the Griffs to end the set saw them take the 25-15 set victory and 1-0 match lead. Entering the second set, the two sides were stuck in a deadlock until a 5-0 run saw Quinnipiac take a sizable lead. The Griffs would remain in striking distance the rest of the set, even going on a 4-0 spurt captained by Loussia and Baldwin, but Quinnipiac would win the set, 25-20, and tie the match at 1-1. Tied through the first four points in the final set, Canisius pulled away with a 5-1 spurt due in part to kills from Baldwin and Loussia. Up 10-7, the Griffs never looked back, scoring the final five points of the frame to end the match with Baldwin picking up four straight kills and Elle Shult tallying the match-winning kill. Baldwin posted a match-high 29 kills while Bourque chipped in 55 assists. For the Bobcats, Giorgia Donghi led the way with 20 kills and Damla Gunes tied Ella Bourque in assists with 55. The Bobcats hit at a slightly lower clip of .294 (65-20-153).
 
Fairfield (8-5, 2-0 MAAC) – 3 | Niagara (3-8, 1-1 MAAC) – 0
Gallagher Center | NIAGARA UNIVERSITY, NY
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Fairfield Recap
Niagara Recap
 
Head coach Todd Kress earned his 500th career victory as he led Fairfield University Volleyball to a 3-0 sweep at Niagara on Sunday afternoon. KJ Johnson led all players with 16 kills, which came on .371 hitting on the outside. The reigning MAAC Player of the Year also posted eight digs and had a hand in two of the Stags' five team blocks. The attack also featured eight kills coming at a .353 clip from Ella Gardiner and five kills on .400 hitting from fellow middle Sara Daniels. Sabria Cooper added four kills, Mikayla Haut had three and Allie Elliott chipped in one. Blakely Montgomery aided the scoring with six kills while doling out 33 assists to guide the offense to a .263 hitting percentage. In the back row, Johnson's eight digs were followed by seven from Maddy Jerdonek and six apiece for the trio of Elliott, Kyla Berg and Noelle Carey. Johnson, Daniels and Gardiner all got a piece of two blocks. Kinga Wronska led the Purple Eagles with 14 kills on 28 errorless swings from the pins. The Niagara setting duo of Casey Brown and Kelly McArthur had 12 and 11 assists, respectively, with Lexi Bapst notching a match-high 12 digs.
 
Marist (6-6, 2-0 MAAC) – 3 | Iona (6-5, 1-1 MAAC) – 0
McCann Arena | POUGHKEEPSIE, NY
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Marist Recap
Iona Recap
 
The Marist volleyball team defeated Iona, 3-0, on Sunday at McCann Arena, as the Red Foxes tallied their second straight sweep to open conference play. Marist prevailed by scores of 25-15, 25-20, 28-26. The Red Foxes jumped out to a 10-4 lead in the first set and didn't look back, closing it out 25-15. The second set was much closer, but Jordan Newblatt led the way with 10 kills and the Red Foxes took it, 25-20, as they finished with three straight points. In the third set, neither team was able to create separation. Marist managed to put it away 28-26 behind strong performances from Newblatt and Sasha van der Merwe. Newblatt had a match-high of 17 kills to go along with a team-high 18 digs. Newblatt hit .351 for the match. She was followed closely by van der Merwe, who had 16 kills and also hit .351. Vanessa Zolg and Gabrielle Heller led the team and match in blocks with four apiece while McKinley Fox had a match-high 36 assists.
 
Siena (3-8, 1-1 MAAC) – 3 | Manhattan (0-9, 0-2 MAAC) – 0
UHY Center | LOUDONVILLE, NY
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Siena Recap
 
The Siena Volleyball team ended their weekend on a high note, collecting their first MAAC victory of the season as they defeated the Manhattan Jaspers by a final score of 3-0 (25-8, 25-17, 25-19). Sara Wagner led the Siena offense with her second double-double of the year, finishing with 15 kills and 13 digs. Emily Wunder added 12 kills. Claire Isaken tossed out 28 assists, while the Saints put up 15 total service aces – a new season-high. Manhattan's Julia Menocal put up 11 kills for the Jaspers. Siena rolled in the first set, opening the match with a 11-0 run before giving up a point. The set ended 25-8 in favor of the Saints. The Green and Gold continued that momentum into the second set, pulling out to a 17-9 lead. Wunder stood out in the set, collecting seven of her 12 kills in the second alone. Despite a small Manhattan comeback, the Saints used a 6-1 run to take a 25-17 victory for the 2-0 lead. The Saints struggled early in the set as Manhattan took advantage of a few Siena errors. However, Wagner stepped up and pumped in seven kills over the set as Siena stepped ahead with a 24-17 lead. After two Manhattan points keeping Siena from the win, a service error ended the match, giving the Saints the victory. As a team, the Saints hit .429 on the match, only committing eight attack errors over the three sets.
 
The 2022 MAAC Volleyball Championship takes place from November 16 through 19 at ESPN Wide World of Sports in Lake Buena Vista, FL. The 10-team, single-elimination championship will feature four rounds of action with the opening round taking place on Wednesday, November 16, followed by the quarterfinals on Thursday, November 17, the semifinals on Friday, November 18, and concluding with the championship match on Saturday, November 19. For all information regarding the 2022 MAAC Volleyball Championship, please visit maacsports.com/vb.
 
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 11 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) is in its 42nd year of competition during the 2022-23 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius College, Fairfield University, Iona University, Manhattan College, Marist College, Mount St. Mary’s University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College.
 
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