Volleyball Continues Homestand with Siena and Marist

MATCH #27
Siena (9-15, 4-9 MAAC) at Canisius (12-14, 9-5 MAAC)
Date: Saturday, Nov. 9
Time: 1 p.m.
Live Video: ESPN+

MATCH #28
Marist (11-13, 9-5 MAAC) at Canisius
Date: Sunday, Nov. 10
Time: 1 p.m.
Live Video: ESPN3

Live Stats: SIDEARM Stats
Location: Koessler Athletic Center (Buffalo, N.Y.)

The Canisius volleyball team is set to continue its five-match stretch at home, taking on Siena and Marist this weekend. The Golden Griffins host the Saints on Saturday before welcoming the Red Foxes to the Koessler Athletic Center on Sunday in a pair of MAAC contests.

Scouting Canisius
• The Blue and Gold are coming off a tough match on Thursday, suffering a 3-1 loss to longtime rival Niagara despite 12 kills apiece from senior Leah Simmons and sophomore Camila Vazquez.
• Simmons will enter the weekend with a chance to become the 11th player in program history to reach the 1,000-kill plateau in a career, and would be the first to do so since Katlyn Tyler in 2016, needing 21 kills to achieve the milestone.
• Sophomore Hannah Nelson tallied three more service aces against the Purple Eagles, giving her 11 contests this season with two-plus aces. The outside hitter's 42 aces this year is tied for the seventh in program history with Julia Hrycyk's 42 aces during the 2015 campaign.
• Vazquez currently leads the conference with 1.25 blocks per set and ranks second in the MAAC at a .364 hitting percentage.

Scouting the Opponents
• Siena is coming off a seven-day break having dropped its last two matches to Marist and Fairfield.
• Ally-Reese Williams paces Siena with 217 kills, with Dakota Jackson behind her at 162 kills. Maria Llinas is fourth in the league with 9.10 assists per set, also sharing the team lead in aces at 21 with fellow Spaniard Sol Guidarelli.
• Gracie Halley is atop the Saints with 257 digs, while Abby Huffman and Maddy Dunigan have 77 and 76 total blocks, respectively.
• Marist most recently played on Wednesday, taking the first set from Fairfield before dropping the next three frames, as Megan Fergus registered 18 kills for the Red Foxes in the loss.
• Fergus enters the weekend with the second-most kills per set in the conference (3.90), as she leads her team with 347 kills on the season to go along with a team-best 73 blocks. Teammate Gabby Murray has the third-best hitting percentage in the league, carrying a .358 clip off of 139 kills.
• Halle Carter (498) and McKinley (430) have split the setting duties for the Red Foxes, both tallying over 400 assists, while libero Sophia Theriot is third in the MAAC with 4.85 digs per set.

Series History
• Canisius and Siena will square off for the 51st time on Saturday, as the Saints hold a 34-16 advantage over the Griffs in the all-time series.
• In the previous meeting this season, Siena defeated the Blue and Gold in a five-set battle that spanned a six-match winning streak for the Griffs, as Simmons posted 14 kills while Vazquez tallied a career-high 10 block assists.
• Through 39 meetings, Canisius has a slim 21-18 edge over Marist in the all-time series, winning the past two meetings.
• In the first contest between the Griffs and Red Foxes this year, Canisius powered through for a 3-2 victory in Poughkeepsie thanks in large part to a 12-kill, 24-dig performance by Nelson while freshman Bree Long also notched 24 digs in the winning effort.

Up Next
The Golden Griffins will close out the 2019 regular season slate at home with two MAAC contests against their league counterparts from Connecticut. On Nov. 16, Canisius will host first-place Fairfield on Senior Day, while Nov. 17 will see the Griffs take on Quinnipiac in the final match of 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).

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

#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

#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