POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (September 15, 2015) – The Vassar College women's volleyball team opens its Liberty League slate this upcoming weekend in the Capital Region, heading to Schenectady and Saratoga Springs for four matches Friday and Saturday. The Brewers will look to get a good start in conference, as they attempt to earn a Liberty League Tournament spot after missing the playoffs for the first time in seven years last season. Vassar is coming off a weekend at the Golden Flyer Invitational, going 1-3 with a victory over Hartwick College last Saturday.

Match Details
Opponent: vs. Union (8-1, 0-0 LL)
Links: (Union Women's Volleyball Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Saratoga Springs, NY
Facility:  Williamson Sports Center
Date: September 18, 2015
Time:  4 p.m.
 
Opponent: vs. St. Lawrence University (2-7, 0-0 LL)
Links: (St. Lawrence Women's Volleyball Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Saratoga Springs, NY
Facility:  Williamson Sports Center
Date: September 18, 2015
Time:  6 p.m.
 
Opponent: vs. No. 16 Clarkson University (7-3, 0-0 LL)
Links: (Clarkson Women's Volleyball Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Schenectady, NY
Facility:  Viniar Athletic Center
Date: September 19, 2015
Time: 12 p.m.
 
Opponent: vs. Skidmore (2-7, 0-0 LL)
Links: (Skidmore Women's Volleyball Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Schenectady, NY
Facility:  Viniar Athletic Center
Date: September 19, 2015
Time: 2 p.m.
 
What To Look For
The Brewers come into the weekend playing some of their best defensive volleyball, holding opposing teams to just a .116 hitting percentage, tops in the Liberty League. Vassar College will need that defense to continue this weekend in conference play, facing the top three hitting squads in the League in Clarkson, St. Lawrence and Union. If the Brewers can start to connect offensively, and the defense continues to give opponents fits, then Vassar could have a strong start to the upcoming Liberty League slate.
 
A Look At The Dutchwomen (8-1, 0-0 Liberty)
Union has had a very strong start to the season, going 8-1 thus far while earning wins in the first eight matches of the year before falling in five games to Saint Michael's College last Saturday afternoon. The Dutchwomen have chalked up impressive wins over No. 18 Williams College, along with defeating strong SUNYAC opponents Cortland and Oneonta in five sets. Union is a solid team across the board, sitting in the Liberty League's top three in hitting percentage, assists, kills and blocks.
 
The Dutchwomen have had a very strong and balanced offense this year, as Rachel Wyman and Kelley White each have registered over 85 kills thus far. Lauren Woods, Morgan Clark and Ally Vandoren each all boasts more than 50 finishes on the season, thanks to the strong passing from Amanda Price. Price is second in the conference in assists per set with 8.94. Libero Katherine Moeller is averaging 4.42 digs per set, fourth best in the Liberty League, and Woods paces the defense at the net with 24 total blocks thus far.
 
Against Union All-Time
The Brewers have held a strong edge in the all-time series with the Dutchwomen, chalking up a 37-13 mark in the 50 previous matches. Recently though Union has held the upper hand, earning wins in each of the last four outings, after VC had won all but three of the 23 matchups dating back to 2002.
 
A Look At The Saints (2-7, 0-0 Liberty)
St. Lawrence had dropped its last three matches coming into the weekend, falling to FDU-Florham, Haverford and Kean University. SLU has played some strong competition to start the year, and pushed Nazareth to five games in Cortland on September 5. The Saints have not struggled to finish points this year, chalking up the Liberty League's second-best hitting percentage at .190. Unfortunately for SLU, opposing teams are hitting .185 against them, which is the second-highest opponent hitting clip in the conference. The Saints are also sixth in the Liberty League in both aces and digs, despite pacing the conference in blocks with 1.73 per set. What is amazing is that despite SLU having more than 30 more kills than their opponents this year, its record is still 2-7.
 
Senior Lexi Brown has been the go-to player offensive for the Saints, as she comes into the weekend with a team-best 90 kills, averaging 3.00 kills per set. Her hitting percentage of .265 is sixth in the League, as she has come off the bench in all but two of the nine matches for SLU this year. Cristina Deschaine and Masha Kolesnikova each have posted 66 terminations, while Kolesnikova leads the team with 25 service aces. Mariah Dignan is third in the conference in digs per set with 4.55, and Deschaine paces the conference with 0.91 rejections per game.
 
Against SLU All-Time
The Brewers are 18-6 against the Saints all-time, winning the first 12 matches in the series dating back to 1993. Since those initial 12 contests, the two teams have split the last 12 matchups in this very even series since 2008.
 
A Look At The No. 16 Golden Knights (7-3, 0-0 Liberty)
The Golden Knights continue to be the top dog in the Liberty League, as Clarkson has not lost a conference match since 2012, winning their last 24 within the League. CU went 37-4 last year, but has already lost three times including losses to No. 18 Mount Union in five sets and No. 5 Juniata in four games. After the Golden Knights take on SUNY Canton on September 15, they will compete in eight straight conference matches. Clarkson leads the League in hitting percentage (.229), assists per set (11.92), and kills per set (13.00).
 
Senior Aishvina Arasu leads the conference in hitting with a .321 attacking rate, also posting the league's top kill number with 130. Teammate Danielle Farabee is second in hitting league-wide with a .296 clip, while senior stud Victoria Kirkemo has added 97 kills after earning Liberty League Player of the Year honors a season ago. Freshman libero Tara Stilwell has stepped right in as CU's lead back row player, averaging 4.57 digs per set. Farabee and Rachael Aird have been solid blocking as well, combining for 34 blocks so far.
 
Against Clarkson All-Time
Vassar and Clarkson make up 11 of the 15 Liberty League titles awarded since the conference's inception in 2000, as VC won the first seven while Clarkson has captured the last three. VC is 11-13 all-time against CU, winning the first 11 while posting a current 13-match loss streak to the Golden Knights.
 
A Look At The Thoroughbreds (2-7, 0-0 Liberty League)
Skidmore enters the Liberty League weekend on a seven-match losing streak, having dropped all four last weekend at the Union College Invitational. The Thoroughbreds have been unable to put points away with the conference's lowest attacking percentage, but the back row and star libero Marcela Familiar have helped to keep plays alive. Skidmore is first in the Liberty League in digs per set with 17.53, but have not been able to score the ball with the conference's lowest ace, block and kill per set rate.
 
Familiar has been one of the better liberos in the conference for the past few years, and she continues to rack up the digs as she leads the Liberty League with 5.78 ups a set. Offensively, Skidmore has only two players averaging over two kills per set, as Allie Dillon and Caite Canfield each are right at the mark with 2.0 finishes a game. Dillon leads the team with 64 terminations, while Brittany Osborn has posted 52 kills as well. Bailey Hutchins and Sam Abrams have split setting duties, combining for 231 assists.
 
Against Skidmore All-Time
The Thoroughbreds and Brewers have had a long, extensive series with each other, playing some of the biggest matches in each program's histories. Vassar holds a 34-19 record against Skidmore, dating back to 1988, as these two teams have played in the UCAA or Liberty League title match nine times.
 
Three For Me
The Brewers have earned all four wins this season in three sets, as three of their four losses have come in four sets. VC has yet to play a five-set contest in 2015.
 
Free To Receive
The Brewers started the season great on serve receive, posting just four errors through the first four matches. Last weekend, VC committed 41 serve receive errors, including 39 in its three losses to Medaille, Brockport and Nazareth.
 
Power Shortage
The Brewers have been great in victories at holding opposition down offensively, holding three of the four teams VC has defeated to negative attacking while Rutgers-Camden posted just a .010 rate. In the four losses, opponents are hitting .228.
 
Ace Miller
Junior hitter Gabby Miller (Scottsdale, AZ/Horizon) comes into the weekend fourth in aces per set with 0.67, while teammates Lauren Ninkovich (Portland, OR/Oregon Episcopal Academy) and Sierra Tobin (Santa Cruz, CA/Santa Cruz) are also in the Liberty League top 10.
 
Killer Freshman
Newcomer Devan Gallagher (San Francisco, CA/Urban School of San Francisco) currently is seventh in the conference in kills per set with 2.59, which is second to only Bard's Sofia Koukia among conference freshmen.
 
Bria Bria
Sophomore transfer Bria Corham (Kansas City, MO/Montville Township) has been solid for the Brewers, posting 56 kills and 32 digs over her first eight matches. Corham has chalked up five or more kills in seven of eight outings, accumulating a season-best 12 terminations against Medaille.
 
Amazing Alex
Sophomore Alex Sams (Los Angeles, CA/Beverly Hills) had her best offensive game as a collegiate this past weekend against Hartwick, chalking up a career-high nine kills on 18 swings, digging five attacks as well.
 
Up Next
After this upcoming weekend, VC will head to Hunter College Wednesday, September 23 at 6 p.m. in non-conference action in the Big Apple.