Elmira College (12-8) vs. Cazenovia College (4-13)
Thursday, October 15, 2015 | Speidel Gymnasium – Elmira, NY
Live Coverage | Twitter: @ECSoaringEagles

Elmira, NY -- The Elmira College women's volleyball team is back in action tonight, as the Soaring Eagles take on Cazenovia College in a non-conference battle at 6:00 p.m. at EC's Speidel Gymnasium. Elmira will also be recognizing its seven graduating members of the Class of 2016 prior to the start of tonight's match.
 
Last Time Out
Elmira enters tonight's contest on a mini two-match win streak, as the Soaring Eagles earned a pair of Empire 8 Conference victories against Utica College and St. John Fisher College. Ashley Heiman '16 and Natalie Schieder '19 paced the Elmira offense with a combined 49 kills. Defensively, Elmira saw three players finish with 20-plus digs, including Kelsey Ross '16 (38), Kasey Campbell (26), and Schieder (23).
 
Back-to-Back Career-Highs
First-year setter Taylor Kaznowski '19 has enjoyed a fine rookie season thus far for the Soaring Eagles and it only got better this past weekend. Kaznowski produced a career-high 40 assists in EC's 3-0 win over Utica before topping that number in Elmira's win over St. John Fisher, as the Hamburg, NY native finished the match with 41 assists.
 
Impact Serving
One area Elmira has excelled at this season has been their ability to serve aces. As a team, the Soaring Eagles have 193 aces this season and are averaging an Empire 8 Conference-leading 2.68 aces per set. Additionally, Elmira has four players whose aces per set average ranks inside the top-10 in the Empire 8 Conference. Leading the way for the Soaring Eagles is first-year outside hitter, Natalie Schieder '19, who is tied for third in the conference with a 0.54 average.
 
Consistent Hitting
In Elmira's two wins over Utica and Fisher, the Soaring Eagles posted hitting percentages of .226 and .211, respectively. For EC, this marked the second time this year the Purple and Gold have hit .200 or better in consecutive matches. Elmira has had seven matches this season with hitting percentages of .200 or better, with all seven resulting in wins. Since 2013, the Soaring Eagles are 21-2 when hitting .200 or better.
 
Scouting the Wildcats
Cazenovia College enters tonight's non-conference match with a 4-13 record and will be looking to put an end to an eight-match skid. Chase Moran and Erin Sweeney are Cazenovia's biggest offensive threats, as the two account for 67.3 percent of the team's kill total. Jerica Holland orchestrates the Wildcat attack with a team-high 275 assists (5.39 assists per set). Defensively, Samantha McCarthy is Cazenovia's workhorse on the ground, as she leads the Wildcats with 162 digs.
 
Looking Ahead
Following tonight's match, Elmira welcomes a slew of teams from around the region for a two-day invitational. The Soaring Eagles open tournament play on Friday, October 16th, when EC takes on SUNY Canton at 2:00 p.m.