Utica, NY (9/12/13)- The Utica College volleyball team travels to Oswego, NY this weekend for the Oswego State Tournament.  The Pioneers will face four different opponents over the two days.  On Friday, UC takes on Wells College at 4 p.m. followed by St. Lawrence University at 8 p.m.  On Saturday, Utica will face off against SUNYIT and Marywood University.  Game times are 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., respectively.

Tournament Coverage: Fans can visit the tournament webpage here for updated information following each match… Also, be sure to check ucpioneers.com for the latest UC volleyball news. 

Last Time Out: The Pioneers (3-2) are coming off a 3-0 loss (21-25, 22-25, 16-25) to SUNYIT at home on Wednesday… Freshman Brandi Blaszak (Marcy, NY/Whitesboro) led the team with seven kills on the evening to go along with five blocks, while junior Cassandra Manzer (Portcrane, NY/Chenango Valley) had five kills and five blocks…  Sophomore Laura Homer-Gunther (Sauquoit, NY/Sauquoit) was all over the net, collecting a team-high eight blocks...  Junior Briona Enny (Queensbury, NY/Queensbury) led all players with 17 digs, and Lora Allen (Dolgeville, NY/Dolgeville) and Carly Lonczak (Marcy, NY/Whitesboro) combined for 25 assists.

Blaszak Named Rookie of the Week: Freshman Brandi Blaszak (Marcy, NY/Whitesboro) was named Empire 8 Conference Rookie of the Week, Monday… Blaszak led the Pioneers with 28 kills, ten blocks, and 38 points as Utica went 2-1 last week... Her best outing was a 14-kill, five-block performance against Wells College on Saturday… On the season, she leads the team with 43 kills, 20 blocks, and 63.5 points.

Helping Out: Sophomore Laura Homer-Gunther (Sauquoit, NY/Sauquoit) is second on the squad with 36 kills and 18 blocks…  Junior Madison Bayer (Islip Terrace, NY/East Islip) has 31 kills, eight aces, and 34 digs on the season, while classmate Briona Enny (Queensbury, NY/Queensbury) has a team-best 59 digs.

Scouting Wells: The Express are 1-4 overall and coming off two losses at the Wells tri match last weekend… Wells lost to SUNYIT 3-0 after falling to Utica 3-2… The team is led by freshman Meredith Kadjeski who has racked up 66 kills, 16 aces, five blocks, and 22 digs… Classmate Nadine Pershyn had a team-best 42 digs on the year. 

Scouting St. Lawrence: The Saints are 4-3 and coming off a 2-1 weekend at the Victory Promotions tournament… They are led by sophomore Lexi Brown and senior Katie Prue… Brown has 61 kills, while Prue has amassed 125 digs… The Saints are 2-0 against Utica all-time… The last meeting between the two teams was Oct. 9, 2009, when St. Lawrence won 3-0.

Scouting SUNYIT: The Wildcats are 5-1 and coming off a 3-0 victory over the Pioneers on Wednesday… They are led by senior Kaitlyn Harrington who has 53 kills and 44 digs… Classmate Taviot Jackowski has a team-high 142 assists and is second on the squad with 30 digs… UC has lost both matches against SUNYIT this season.

Scouting Marywood: The Pacers are 4-1 and coming off a 3-0 win over Wilkes University on Sept. 4… They are led by Sara Melick and Amy Chester… Melick has 39 kills, while Chester has 60 digs… This will be the first ever meeting between the two teams.  

Looking Ahead: UC will welcome Oswego State to the Clark Athletic Center for a non-conference match up on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.


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