Elmira College (16-12) vs. Bard College (12-19)Friday, October 30, 2015 | 5:00 P.M. | Dewar Arena – Oneonta, NYLive Coverage Elmira College (16-12) vs. Plattsburgh State (7-18)Saturday, October 31, 2015 | 10:00 A.M. | Dewar Arena – Oneonta, NYLive Coverage Elmira College (16-12) at Oneonta State (17-11)Saturday, October 31, 2015 | 12:30 P.M. | Dewar Arena – Oneonta, NYLive Coverage Elmira, NY -- The Elmira College women's volleyball team will wrap-up its regular-season schedule this weekend when it travels to take part in the Dig Pink Invitational, hosted by Oneonta State. The Soaring Eagles will open the event on Friday evening when they take on Bard College at 5:00 p.m. Elmira will be back in action early the following morning when it faces Plattsburgh State at 10:00 a.m., before concluding the tournament against the tournament hosts at 12:30 p.m.
Going DancingElmira punched its ticket to the Empire 8 Tournament on the final weekend of conference play last weekend. The Soaring Eagles played host to the biggest crossover of the weekend when it welcomed Houghton College and Stevens Institute of Technology to Speidel Gymnasium. All three teams were still in contention for postseason play heading into the weekend making it a very interesting final day of league play. The Purple and Gold opened the day with a big straight-sets victory over Houghton. The Soaring Eagles would fall to Stevens in the final match of the day; however, due to the Ducks victory over Houghton and Elmira's head-to-head tiebreaker against the Highlanders, EC secured the fourth and final berth to the conference tournament. It is the fifth time over the last six years that Elmira has qualified for the tournament.
Double-DipA pair of outside hitters took home EC Athlete of the Week honors, as
Kelsey Ross '16 and
Natalie Schieder '19 were tabbed with the recognition after helping the team secure its berth into the postseason. Ross racked up 20 kills and 43 digs in the three matches last week, including nine kills and 12 digs in the huge victory over Houghton. Schieder paced the squad with 33 kills, while also adding 43 digs on the week. Her biggest match also came against the Highlanders, as she turned in her best all-around match of the season. The Alden, NY, native posted 15 kills on a .412 hitting percentage, while also adding 18 digs and three service aces. The EC Athlete of the Week honor was the first for each player this season.
Keep It .200A .200 hitting percentage seems to be the Soaring Eagles benchmark for a successful outcome this season. Elmira has posted a 9-1 record in matches in which the team has hit .200 or better. Conversely, EC is just 7-11 this season in matches in which it hits below that mark as a team.
Scouting the RaptorsBard College enters the weekend with a 12-19 record overall; however, the Raptors have been a dangerous team in non-conference play. All 12 of the team's victories have come outside of Liberty League play, while the Raptors are 12-7 in such contests. The team has played better as of late, snapping a five-match losing streak with a pair of straight-set victories last weekend over University of Saint Joseph and Brooklyn College. However, Bard is coming off a straight-sets defeat earlier this week against SUNYIT. Sofia Koukia is the Raptor's main attacking threat, as her 320 kills are more than double her next closest teammate (Tytravia Riley, 148). The offense flows through the steady setting of Victoria Chou who has 682 assists on the year. Defensively, the Raptors are paced on the ground by Philippine Alba who has 279 digs, while the net-front is patrolled by Alexis Akingbade who has 47 total blocks.
Scouting the CardinalsIt has been a forgettable second half of the year for Plattsburgh State. After kicking off the season with five wins in their first seven matches, the Cardinals are just 2-16 since. The team enters the weekend on a 10-match losing streak. Sam Colombo paces Plattsburgh State offensively with 246 kills, while Sydney Gabriel is the primary distributor with 637 assists. Defensively, the Cardinals boast a strong duo in Colombo and Tammara Brandon who have 291 and 289 digs, respectively. Emily Miller is someone to watch out for at the net-front with 37 total blocks, including 16 solos.
Scouting the Red DragonsOneonta State has put together a strong season, entering the weekend with a 17-11 mark overall. The Red Dragons have won seven of their last 10 matches, while they enter play on Friday on a two-match winning streak. Jill Darpino paces the Red Dragon attack with 310 kills. The team runs a 6-2 setup with Karly Greco and Jessica Pelaccio sharing the distribution with 406 and 335 assists, respectively. Defensively, Allyson Coniglione has been a fantastic with 479 digs. The net-front is patrolled by an intimidating duo of Kristen Polan and Melissa Voyer. The former leads the team with 94 total blocks, including 20 solos, while Voyer is no slouch with 80 total blocks and 18 solos.
Looking AheadElmira will face No. 1 seed Stevens in the opening match of the Empire 8 Conference Tournament, which is set for 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 7
th. If Elmira were to advance, they will play either No. 3 seed Nazareth College or No. 2 seed Ithaca College at 12:00 p.m. the following day.
