Women's Volleyball | 11/8/2019 10:05:20 PM
ROCHESTER, NY – Top-seed St. John Fisher College will host No. 3 seed Nazareth College for the 2019 Empire 8 Women’s Volleyball Championship, which takes place at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Nov 9 at Manning-Napier Varsity Gym. The league champion receives an automatic berth into the 2019 NCAA Division III Women’s Volleyball Championship, which begins Nov. 15-17.
SEMIFINAL #1 – No. 1 St. John Fisher 3, Elmira 0 (25-12, 25-21, 25-16)
The Cardinals won their first-ever Empire 8 postseason match and advanced to championship for the first time with a 25-12, 25-21, 25-16 victory over No. 4 seed Elmira in the opening semifinal Friday. Fisher out-scored Elmira 50-23 in the match. Alea Steigerwald led all players with 18 kills, while hitting .394. She added 12 digs and three service aces. Rebecca Hay dished out 33 assists and added 11 digs, while Lauren Gilbert had nine kills for the Cardinals. Kassi Hastings recorded a double-double for Elmira with 12 digs and 11 assists. Savannah Terry added five kills and two blocks for the Soaring Eagles.
The Cardinals won the Empire 8 regular season title for the first time in program history with a perfect 7-0 mark in league play. Steigerwald, the 2018 Empire 8 Player and Rookie of the Year, leads the conference and is among the national leaders in kills (478), kills per set (4.47) and points per set (5.26). She also leads the team with 366 digs and 66 service aces. Hay has 935 assists to lead the conference, while first-year libero Alexis Mancha has 329 digs.
SEMIFINAL #2 – No. 3 Nazareth 3, No. 2 Houghton 1 (25-16, 25-20, 22-25, 25-18)
No. 3 Nazareth advanced to the Empire 8 Championship for the second straight season after knocking off second-seeded Houghton in four sets in the second semifinal at St. John Fisher Friday evening. The Golden Flyers exploded offensively, recording 68 points. Senior Melissa Newcomb hit an impressive .517, while slamming a match-high 17 kills. Kaylee Kelly had a team-high 14 digs to go along with 12 kills, while Danielle Synowski had 10 kills and 10 digs. Jessica Barry dished out 43 assists in addition to recording four service aces. Brooke Lewandowski led Houghton with 10 kills, while Haley Unverdorben dished out 24 assists. Ally and Jenna Bittinger combined for 32 digs.
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), Synowski (253) and Newcomb (245). Newcomb is second in the Empire 8 with a .298 hitting percentage. Barry leads the team with 863 assists, while sophomore McKenzie Hart leads all Empire 8 players with 488 digs and 4.44 digs per set.
St. John Fisher knocked off Nazareth in three sets during the regular season, 25-11, 25-21, 25-22 on Oct. 2. The Cardinals hit .301 in the match. Steigerwald had 15 kills and 11 digs, while Gilbert added 11 kills and Lindsey DeBonis had eight. Hay dished out 28 assists and added four service aces. Synowski had eight kills and Barry added 15 assists to lead Nazareth.
Nazareth is looking to win its Empire 8 record ninth league title, while the Cardinals are 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 defeated No. 4 Elmira, 3-0 (25-12, 25-21, 25-16)
No. 3 Nazareth defeated No. 2 Houghton, 3-1 (25-16, 25-20, 22-25, 25-18)
Saturday, November 9 - Championship Final
No. 1 St. John Fisher vs. No. 3 Nazareth - 2 p.m.
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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