Women's Volleyball | 11/4/2022 10:31:51 PM
Top-seed St. John Fisher University and No. 2 seed Hartwick College will meet for the 2022 Empire 8 Women's Volleyball Championship after earning victories in the semifinal matches on Friday, November 4. St. John Fisher knocked off No. 4 seed Houghton University in three sets, while Hartwick defeated No. 6 seed Utica University, also in in three sets. Both matches were played at Manning-Napier Varsity Gym on the campus of St. John Fisher
Hartwick won its first Empire 8 Tourmament game in program history and is also in the E8 title game for the first time. They will take on the Cardinals for the 2022 E8 Women's Volleyball Championship Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. from Manning-Napier Varsity Gym. St. John Fisher is attempting to win its fourth straight E8 crown and become the E8 program to do so. The Cardinals and Hawks met once earlier in 2022, with St. John Fisher earning a three-set win on Oct. 1.
The winner of the 2022 Empire 8 Championship receives and automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championship, which begins next weekend.
NO. 1 ST. JOHN FISHER 3, NO. 4 HOUGHTON 0
St. John Fisher (20-7) walked away with a 25-15, 25-20, 25-15 over No. 4 seed Houghton University (10-14), and have their sights set on the 2022 E8 Championship.
In the first set, the Cardinals pulled ahead 7-1, thanks to service aces by
Lindsey DeBonis and Kiera Hartpence. The Highlanders made a run to cut their deficit to 9-7, but Fisher took advantage of mistakes to keep their lead and it was topped off with an
Emily Brochey ace to earn the set one victory. The second set was very competitive, with neither team going up by more than two points until the score was 18-17. A kill by DeBonis put the team in front 20-17, and a Kiana Walker kill wrapped up the set at 25-22 to put the team ahead 2-0.
The Cardinals took a hold on the third frame thanks to kills by
Sydney French and a Brochey service ace, putting the team up 7-3. As the set moved forward, Walker and
Delayne Young recorded kills to push the advantage to 17-11. Back-to-back errors by the Highlanders gave Fisher a 23-13 lead and then DeBonis and
Katie Leaty had kills to punch their ticket to the conference finals.
French and Walker each recorded ten kills and hitting .500 and .318 respectively. Hartpence tallied 14 digs, three assists and two service aces as the libero. Leaty was impressive as the setter, collecting 33 assists to just one error. As a team, the Cardinals had 12 service aces, 14 blocks and hit .278.
Fisher will take on Hartwick College on Saturday, Nov. 5 at the Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium. The Hawks defeated Utica University in straight sets on Friday to advance to the finals. Earlier in the season, the Cardinals defeated Hartwick 3-0 (25-11, 26-24, 25-13).
NO. 2 HARTWICK 3, No. 6 UTICA 0
Hartwick (20-4) won its first Empire 8 postseason match advanved to the Empire 8 Championship match for the first time in program history after a 25-22, 25-20, 25-15 win over No. 6 Utica (17-12)
The Hawks found themselves down 10-3 early in the first set as the Pioneers forced the #2 seed in the tournament into a handful of attack errors.After an early timeout, Hartwick clawed their way back in as the duo of
Colette Maloney (Williston Park, N.Y.) and
Staecia Silofau (Kapolei, Hawaii) turned the seven-point deficit to a one-point advantage.
Shaelyn Thornton (Scarborough, Me.) put away three kills in the middle of the set to give the Hawks the push they needed to close out the first set win 25-22
The second set proved to be a more back-and-forth affair. However, strong defense at the net by the Hartwick front row gave the squad the push needed to take the second set by a score of 25-20.
The Hawks took complete control of the third set, defeating the Pioneers 25-15.Hartwick's offense was balanced throughout the contest. Maloney led the way with 11 kills.
Kaileigh Brandow (Manorville, N.Y.) and Thornton each added nine.
Niah Reeves (Binghamton, N.Y.) was a big contributor at the net for the Hawks, as the first-year middle put away four kills and one block assist.
Brandow, Thornton, and Silofau each picked up double digit digs over the three sets.
Braelyn Hornick (Candor, N.Y.) once again posted 30+ assists and served up four aces.
The victory tonight was also one for the record books for the Hawks as they reached the 20-win mark for the first time in recent program history.
2022 Empire 8 Women's Volleyball Championship Tournament Schedule
Tuesday, Nov. 1 - First Round
No. 6 Utica defeated No. 3 Nazareth, 3-2 (11-25, 25-20, 19-25, 25-19, 15-13) – BOX SCORE
No. 4 Houghton defeated No. 5 Medaille, 3-0 (25-23, 25-10, 25-22) – BOX SCORE
Friday, Nov. 4 - Semi-Finals at St. John Fisher
No. 1 St. John Fisher defeated No. 4 Houghton, 3-0 (25-15, 25-22, 25-15) – BOX SCORE
No. 2 Hartwick defeated No. 6 Utica, 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-15) – BOX SCORE
Saturday, Nov. 5 Championship at St. John Fisher
No. 2 Hartwick at No. 1 St. John Fisher, 2 p.m. – VIDEO/LIVE STATS
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
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