Volleyball Update from Coach Sheffield

[Dane Pound]

Hello Friends, Family, and Alumni of UAlbany Volleyball!

 

UAlbany Volleyball wins it's 1st America East regular season championship! It was a great weekend in a lot of ways for the volleyball program. On Friday night, the team showed up excited to play against the much bigger Stony Brook squad. The team has been working hard on it's defense and were looking forward to getting after it with the visiting Seawolves. Offensively we really gave them a lot of problems, especially Junior middle blocker Ashlee Reed, who had a career high 17 kills and hit .640 in the three game match. The past month she's been working on a jump float serve, and that really gave them a lot of trouble. Senior middle blocker Susan Spierre also had a very effective match with 5 kills, .556 hitting percentage, and 5 blocks. The team hit .388 for the match, making it the 13th time this year going over the .300 mark.

 

Seniors Jill Dombrowski and Susan Spierre were honored prior to our Saturday match against UMBC. They have both had great careers and have meant a lot to the success of the program. The team was determined to get a win for them in their last regular season home match. The team came out fired up and quickly rolled in games one and two. Game three was a different story, as UMBC came out with much more aggressive serving trying to slow down our offense. We struggled to find a rhythm for a while and found ourselves down 25-21 when Ashlee Reed went back to serve. When she was done, the scoreboard said 30-25, and the Great Danes had won the match 3-0. Reed had another great match with a double-double 12 kills and 10 digs, and a .440 hitting percentage. The win (along with Northeastern's loss that night) clinched the regular season championship for the program. Following the match, we had a very nice reception for the seniors. I'd like to thank Eileen Daugherty for making this great event possible!

 

Here's what senior middle blocker, Susan Spierre, had to say about the weekend:

 

"The two wins this past weekend over Stony Brook and UMBC were nothing short of a team effort. We had solid performances from every person on the team, which has been a major strength of ours all season. It was great to sweep both teams in three games after going four with each of them just a few weeks ago. Being our Senior night, Saturday's match was especially exciting for Jill and I. We are very thankful to all of our fans and supporters who made the night so special. The match kept our fans on the edge of their seats especially in game three when we were trailing the UMBC Retrievers most of the game. However the team worked together and found a way to win the match in three after an amazing comeback. It is nice to know that we are a team that can stay focused and composed even when the scoreboard is not in our favor. The team is ecstatic about hosting the conference championships in two weeks, which is now certain after winning the two matches this past weekend."

 

Our last regular season matches this year will be on the road this weekend at Maine and New Hampshire before we head home to host the America East Conference Championships. Information about the tournament is below.

 

Fri. Nov. 12 @ Maine 7:00 pm

Sat. Nov. 13 @ New Hampshire 4:00 pm

 

Fri. Nov. 19 First Semi-final match (UAlbany v. 4th Seed) 5:00 pm

Second Semi-final match (2nd Seed v. 3rd Seed) 7:30 pm

Sat. Nov. 20 America East Championship 4:00 pm

 

The field has been set. UAlbany, Northeastern, Maine, and Binghamton will be in the tournament. The 2-4 seeds will be played out this weekend. If you are looking for a hotel, the Holiday Inn Turf on Wolfe Rd. will be the host hotel. Call and let them know that you are wanting the volleyball room rate.

 

Current Division I winning streaks:

21 Hawaii

20 Washington

19 Florida A&M

19 Georgia Tech

19 Nebraska

18 Ualbany

 

Last week, sophomore outside hitter, Shelby Goldman, won her 2nd conference player of the week award. Sophomore setter, Blair Buchanan, also picked up conference setter of the week. It was the 6th time this year that Blair has won the award and the 4th straight week. Congratulations to both!

 

We look forward to seeing you on the road or in the stands at home!

 

Thanks for your support!

 

GO DANES!!!

 

Kelly Sheffield

UAlbany Volleyball