STANDISH, Maine – Top-seeded Rivier University (25-4, 13-0 GNAC) will host #8 Saint Joseph's (13-17, 7-6 GNAC) in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Volleyball Tournament Quarterfinal matchup tonight at 7:00 PM.
BRACKETOLOGY:
Quarterfinals - Tuesday, November 1
#8 Saint Joseph's Maine at #1 Rivier - 7PM
#5 Regis at #4 Simmons - 7PM
#6 Elms at #3 Lasell - 7PM
#7 Norwich at #2 JWU - 7PM
Semifinals - Thursday, November 3
4/5 winner vs 1/8 winner
3/6 winner vs 2/7 winner
Championship - Saturday, November 5
Final at highest remaining seed
TEAM STATISTICS IN GNAC PLAY:
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
Saint Joseph's:
- Sophomore Maggie Sylvester (Barrington, N.H.) leads the team in kills (198) and has added 215 digs with 20 total blocks
- Freshman Victoria Briones (El Paso, Texas) has been an impact player for the Monks with 195 kills, 356 digs and 42 service aces
- First-year Nadia Sixto (Chattanooga, Tenn.) has produced 171 kills with 24 aces and 52 total blocks
- Senior Hanna Holden (Stoughton, Mass.) has tallied 70 kills, 499 assists, 52 service aces, and 21 total blocks
Rivier:
- Grad student Sydney Racevicius leads the GNAC in kills (391), kills per set (4.07), points (481.5), and points per set (5.0) and ranks third in total attacks (927) and service aces per set (0.85) and fourth in aces (82)
- Sophomore Lily Sills is second on the team in kills (224) with a .337 attack percentage, 43 aces, and 79 total blocks
- Grad student Avery Pollard ranks as the GNAC leader in assists (905) and assists per set (9.43) and is fifth in service aces (77)
- Junior Sofia Pawlusik leads the Raiders in digs (353) and has chipped in with 42 aces
ATTITUDE REFLECTS LEADERSHIP:
SAINT JOSEPH'S: Jon Roberts (5th season, 40-79, .336)
RIVIER: Jeff Costa (1st season, 25-4, .862)
THE LAST TIME WE MET:
Rivier defeated Saint Joseph's, 3-0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-14) at Mike McDevitt Court on Saturday, October 22nd. Rivier held the advantage in kills (43-15), attack percentage (.316 - .036), assists (36-12), service aces (8-5), and total blocks (5-4) in the victory as Racevicius led all players with 17 kills.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
The Monks are 5-23 all-time versus the Raiders with their last win being a 3-0 triumph during the 1999 campaign. The Raiders have not dropped a set to the Monks since 2017.
POSTSEASON HISTORY:
The Monks have made the conference tournament 10 out of the last 12 years with trips to the postseason in each of the last seven seasons. The Monks are looking to advance to the semifinals for the first time since 2015.
Rivier has made an appearance in the GNAC Tournament in each of the last 22 seasons with a 19-2 record in quarterfinal games and a 16-3 mark in semifinal matches. The Raiders have won six GNAC Championships with their last title being the 2014 crown.
