Women's Volleyball | 11/5/2019 11:01:00 AM
St. John Fisher College, Houghton College, Nazareth College and Elmira College and compete for the 2019 Empire 8 Women’s Volleyball Championship, which takes place on Friday, Nov. 8 and Saturday, Nov 9, hosted by top-seed Fisher. The Cardinals will face No. 4 seed Elmira at 5 p.m. Friday in the opening semifinal from Manning-Napier Varsity Gym, while No. 2 seed Houghton will take on third-seeded Nazareth in the second semifinal at 7:30 p.m. The two semifinal winners will meet for the 2019 Empire 8 Championship on Saturday at 2 p.m.
The league champion receives an automatic berth into the 2020 NCAA Division III Women’s Volleyball Championship, which begins Nov. 15-17.
Participants
No. 1 - St. John Fisher (7-0 E8, 21-10 Overall)
No. 2 - Houghton (6-1 E8, 20-4 Overall)
No. 3 - Nazareth (5-2 E8, 12-17 Overall)
No. 4 - Elmira (4-3 E8, 13-15 Overall)
SEMIFINAL #1 – No. 4 Elmira at No. 1 St. John Fisher
St. John Fisher won the Empire 8 regular season title for the first time in program history with a perfect 7-0 mark in league play. The Cardinals are also looking for their first-ever E8 postseason victory. Sophomore outside hitter Alea Steigerwald, the 2018 Empire 8 Player and Rookie of the Year, leads the conference and is among the national leaders in kills (460), kills per set (4.42) and points per set (5.21). She also leads the team with 354 digs and 63 service aces. Junior Rebecca Hay has 902 assists to lead the conference, while first-year libero Alexis Mancha has 324 digs.
The fourth-seeded Soaring Eagles, led by first-year head coach Daniel Miranda, are in the postseason for the first time since 2013. Junior Lauren Smith leads a balanced offensive attack with 199 kills, while classmate Savannah Terry has 165 kills and is hitting a team-best .270 to go along with 58 blocks. Junior setter Kassi Hastings leads the squad with 680 assists, while senior libero Cassie Potter has 242 digs
St. John Fisher knocked off Elmira in three sets, 25-11, 25-19, 25-23 on Oct. 25. The Cardinals hit .500 in the opening set and held off a late Elmira rally in the third set. Gilbert led the Cardinals with 14 kills, while Hay dished out 33 assists. Cassie Potter had 12 digs to lead Elmira.
SEMIFINAL #2 – No. 3 Nazareth vs. No. 2 Houghton
Houghton, the number two seed, enters the tournament with a sparkling 20-4 overall record this season and has won six straight matches. The Highlanders are making their second all-time appearance in the Empire 8 Tournament and first since 2014. Senior Brooke Lewandowski leads Houghton with 227 kills. Her .302 hitting percentage is second in the league, while she also has 60 blocks. Sophomore setter Haley Unverdorben has 774 assists in 86 sets (9.00 assists per set) and 59 service aces, while senior libero Morgan Potempa leads the squad with 265 digs. Classmate Ally Bittinger has 256 digs and 174 kills in 2019.
Defending Empire 8 Champion Nazareth finished third in the league standings with a 5-2 mark. The Golden Flyers have three players with at least 200 kills in seniors Delaney Martin (257), Danielle Synowski (243) and Melissa Newcomb (228). Newcomb is third in the Empire 8 with a .286 hitting percentage. Junior setter Jessica Barry leads the team with 820 assists, while sophomore McKenzie Hart leads all Empire 8 players with 479 digs and 4.52 digs per set.
Houghton defeated Nazareth in four sets on Oct. 12. The Golden Flyers took the opening set, 25-16, before Houghton roared back to win the next three sets, 25-23, 25-22, 25-20. Amy Huddell led a balanced Houghton attack with 12 kills, while Unverdorben dished out 36 assists and added 15 digs. Newcomb led the Golden Flyers with 16 kills, while Delaney Martin added 15. Barry compiled 37 assists.
Nazareth is looking to win its Empire 8 record ninth league title, while Elmira is looking for its second league championship and first since 2000. The Highlanders and Cardinals are both trying to win their first E8 women’s volleyball championship.
This weekend's championship schedule is below. For the most up to date information on this year's championship, follow the Empire 8 Conference on Twitter (@Empire8).
2019 Empire 8 Women's Volleyball Championship Schedule
Friday, November 8 - Semifinals
No. 1 St. John Fisher vs. No. 4 Elmira - 5 p.m. - WATCH - LIVE STATS
No. 2 Houghton vs. No. 3 Nazareth - 7:30 p.m. - WATCH - LIVE STATS
Saturday, November 9 - Championship Final
Winner of Semifinal #1 vs. Winner of Semifinal #2 - 2 p.m. - WATCH - LIVE STATS
Admission
$6.00 - Adults
$4.00 - Students and seniors with ID
Free - Children under 12
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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