Volleyball Heads to Garden State for Final Road Trip

MATCH #24
Canisius (11-12, 8-3 MAAC) at Rider (11-13, 8-4 MAAC)
Date: Saturday, Nov. 2
Time: 12 p.m.
Live Stats: SIDEARM Stats
Live Video: Broncvision
Location: Alumni Gymnasium (Lawrenceville, N.J.)

MATCH #25
Canisius at Saint Peter's (3-21, 1-11 MAAC)
Date: Sunday, Nov. 3
Time: 1 p.m.
Live Stats: SIDEARM Stats
Location: Yanitelli Center (Jersey City, N.J.)

The Canisius volleyball team will take its final road trip of the regular season this weekend, as the Golden Griffins travel to New Jersey for two key conference matches. Opening the weekend on Saturday at Rider in a battle between two of the top teams in the MAAC, the Griffs will then travel north to Jersey City for a Sunday meeting at Saint Peter's.

Scouting Canisius
• The Blue and Gold ended a three-match slide by pulling off a pair of sweeps at the Koessler Athletic Center this past weekend, as a season-high 15 aces helped defeat Manhattan on Sunday, while the Griffs held Iona to a .078 hitting percentage the following day.
• Sophomore Hannah Nelson enters Saturday one kill shy of 200 on the season, as her 199 kills ranks second on the team behind senior Leah Simmons' 255.
• Nelson's 38 service aces this season are tied for first in the MAAC and 21st nationally, while her 0.47 aces per set ranks 26th among Division I leaders.
• Fellow sophomore Camila Vazquez has been a force during league play, as her 1.27 blocks per set in conference action is the best in the MAAC while her .359 hitting percentage puts her third among the conference leaders.
• Senior Cassidy Ceriani needs 36 more assists to reach the 3,500-plateau for her career, while the setter is 244 career assists away from tying Janelle Davis for second in program history.
• The Griffs lead the MAAC with 16.57 digs per set, led by freshman libero Bree Long and her 4.40 digs per set (374 total digs).

Scouting the Opponents
• Rider is coming into Saturday's match on a four-match winning streak, including a sweep of Marist last Saturday. As a team, the Broncs pace the conference with 2.10 blocks per set.
• Morgan Romano, the reigning MAAC Player of the Week and nine-time Rookie of the Week, leads the conference with 4.55 kills per set, also sitting tenth with a .253 hitting percentage. Additionally, Romano's 459 points is third-best in the nation. Setter Anilee Sher is first in the MAAC with 0.49 aces per set and second with 10.51 assists per set, while Rachelle Runyon is third among MAAC liberos with 4.78 digs per set. Morgan Koch and Evelyn Shanefield are second and third in the MAAC, respectively, with 83 and 82 blocks.
• Saint Peter's is in the midst of a 13-match losing streak since winning its conference opener at Manhattan on Sept. 21, forcing five sets only twice in that span.
• The Peacocks are led by Alanis Alvarado's 3.15 kills per set which ranks third in the MAAC, as the sophomore is also averaging 3.53 points per set that is good for fifth in the conference. Teammate Angeleyshka Curbelo is ninth in the league in kills, averaging 2.74 per set, while libero Karla Seda is atop the MAAC and 42nd among the nation's leaders with an average of 5.17 digs per set.

Series History
• In the all-time series between the Griffs and Broncs, Canisius has won four-straight contests to hold a 29-10 advantage over Rider.
• The previous meeting between the two teams this season went the distance, as Canisius triumphed in the fifth set thanks to a career-high 22 kills from Nelson and 16 more from Simmons, while Romano tallied 24 kills for Rider.
• Canisius and Saint Peter's will meet for the 49th time on Sunday, as the Blue and Gold lead the all-time series by a 34-14 margin.
• Simmons set the Canisius single-match record for hitting percentage in the first matchup between the two squads this season, notching 18 kills off a .727 hitting clip as the Griffs swept the Peacocks to open their home slate.

Up Next
The Golden Griffins return to the Koessler Athletic Center Nov. 7 for the second half of the "Battle of the Bridge" series, taking on Niagara at 6 p.m. The rivalry contest is the start of a five-match homestead for the Griffs to close out the regular season.

Follow the Griffs
For complete coverage of Canisius volleyball, please follow the Griffs on social media at @GriffVolleyball (Instagram) and @GriffVolleyball (Twitter).

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Players Mentioned

#3 Cassidy Ceriani: S; 5' 11"; Senior

#14 Hannah Nelson: OH; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#13 Leah Simmons: MH; 6' 1"; Senior

#8 Camila Vazquez: MH; 6' 2"; Sophomore

#4 Bree Long: L; 5' 5"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#3 Cassidy Ceriani
: 5' 11"; Senior
: S

#14 Hannah Nelson
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: OH

#13 Leah Simmons
: 6' 1"; Senior
: MH

#8 Camila Vazquez
: 6' 2"; Sophomore
: MH

#4 Bree Long
: 5' 5"; Freshman
: L