ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College women's volleyball team will take a brief hiatus from Empire 8 Conference play on Thursday, October 5, when EC welcomes Wells College to Speidel Gymnasium. The non-conference match is scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT: The Soaring Eagles dropped a heart-wrenching five-set bout to Empire 8 foe Alfred University on Tuesday evening in Alfred, New York. The match was even throughout, as the Saxons held a slight .181-to-.132 advantage in hitting percentage. The tilt went five sets, as an Alfred 15-12 win in the fifth sealed the league loss for the Soaring Eagles. As she has done all season,
Natalie Schieder '19 led the way for Elmira, as she finished the contest with match highs in kills (20) and digs (23). The Alden, New York, native's double-double was her team-leading eighth of the season.
Taylor Kaznowski '19 chipped in a 41-assists-13-dig performance in the bout, her fifth double-double of the year. Freshman
Savannah Terry '21 posted a season-high nine kills and hit at an impressive .467 clip in the match.
SCHIEDER SOARS: The junior outside hitter, Schieder, has been a leader for the Soaring Eagles on both offense and defense all season. Not only does she pace the team in kills per set (3.87), service aces (33) and attack percentage (.227), she also averages the most digs per set (3.37) on the team. Schieder has been consistent all year, as she has recorded a double-double in eight of EC's 18 matches. In the E8, Schieder ranks second in total kills (232), just four behind Anna Marcy of St. John Fisher College, and she has tallied the seventh-most digs (202). Schieder's noteworthy play is catching the eyes of others, as she was awarded Empire 8 Conference Player of the Week honors in addition to being named to the Canton Classic All-Tournament Team in the past week.
SCOUTING WELLS: The Express enter tomorrow's contest with an 11-8 overall record, after dropping three of four matches at the Canton Classic. In North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) play, Wells is a perfect 4-0, which places it atop the league standings. In the NEAC, the Express rank second in digs (15.87) and kills (11.39) per set, and third in attack percentage (.176), assists (10.47) and blocks (1.31) per set. Leading the way for Wells this season has been senior outside Anuhea Leite-Ah Yo, who paces the conference in digs (308). The reigning NEAC All-Conference First-Team honoree also ranks seventh in the league in service aces with 35 on the year. Offensively, freshman middle hitter Rachel Anderson has tallied a team-leading 191 kills and owns an impressive .246 hitting percentage. Anderson's main attacking mate has been sophomore outside hitter Jackie Allen, a NEAC All-Conference Third-Teamer who is second behind Anderson with 172 kills. Senior setter Eliza Schwab has orchestrated the team's offense all season, with 537 assists, the second-highest total in the NEAC.
SERIES HISTORY: The all-time series between the Soaring Eagles and the Express is a storied one that has spanned 38 years. The series has leaned heavily in Elmira's favor, as the Purple and Gold have won all three previous meetings and have dropped just one set in those bouts. The first match came in the 1976 season and it saw Elmira top Wells by a 2-0 final score in Elmira, New York. The most recent contest in the series came in the 2012 campaign, when the Soaring Eagles earned a straight-set victory on their home court.
RETURNING HOME: The Purple and Gold have not played at Speidel Gymnasium since the E8 Crossover at Elmira on Saturday, September 30. Elmira's momentum at Speidel Gymnasium has cooled drastically after it started the season 3-0 at home. EC has suffered four straight setbacks in Elmira, three of which were conference bouts. The Soaring Eagles' lone non-league match in that stretch was a straight-set loss at the hands of NEAC affiliate Morrisville State.
WELCOME TO THE BLOCK PARTY: The EC women have really started to show improvement in their play at the net in recent contests, as EC has averaged 6.0 total blocks in the last three matches. This new defensive strategy was highlighted by Elmira's performance against Alfred on Tuesday, when the team recorded a season-high eight blocks. The Soaring Eagles have not recorded eight total blocks in a match since an October 16, 2015, bout against SUNY Canton. Terry and
Karina Hastings '19 have been EC's most consistent threats at the net, as the pair are tied for the team lead in blocks with 23 apiece. In the bout against Alfred, Hastings set a new career high with five blocks, while Terry tied a season-high total with three.
Tiara John '19 also tied a season high with four blocks against the Saxons.
LOOKING AHEAD: The Soaring Eagles will return to action on Saturday, October 7, when they head to Utica, New York, to compete in an Empire 8 Crossover at Utica. EC opens the crossover with a 1:30 bout against St. John Fisher and ends the day at 4:00 p.m. with a tilt against the host Pioneers.
