Women's Volleyball | 10/30/2018 12:06:00 PM
ROCHESTER, NY – The RIT volleyball team will compete in the 2018 Liberty League Volleyball Championship this weekend at Ithaca College. RIT, the No. 2 seed will face third-seed Vassar College in the first semifinal Friday, Nov. 2 at 5 p.m. Top-seed and host Ithaca will face No. 4 seed Clarkson University in the second semifinal at 7:30 p.m. The two semifinal winners will meet for the 2018 Liberty League Championship at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 3.
RIT enters the tournament in the midst of a tremendous season with a 26-4 mark. The Tigers finished 6-1 in Liberty League play and have won 24 of their last 26 matches. Last weekend, RIT won all three of its matches at the New York State Regional Challenge and
Katie Hobler (Rochester, NY/Our Lady of Mercy) was named Most Outstanding Player.
RIT's .867 winning percentage in the regular season is the second-highest in program history.
Hobler is enjoying an incredible freshman season, leading the Liberty League with 442 kills and is sixth nationally. Her 4.29 kills per set is also 11th in Division III and her .326 hitting percentage is in the top-75 nationally. Senior setter
Erin Parkinson (Carrollton, TX/W.T. White) leads the Liberty League and is fourth nationally with 1,141 assists and is 15th, averaging 10.66 assists per set. She moved into fourth all-time at RIT with 4,597 career assists, which also makes her the active Division III leader.
Sophomore
Taylor Higgins (Peru, NY/Peru) is second on the team with 316 kills and leads RIT with 309 digs and 44 service aces. The middle blocker duo of
Kelly Waters (Burnt Hills, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake) and
Shelby Doheny (Moreau, NY/South Glens Falls) has excelled for RIT. Waters has 169 kills, a team-best .337 hitting percentage and 0.63 blocks per set. Doheny is right behind with 153 kills, a .312 hitting percentage and 57 blocks, which leads RIT. Libero
Maria Simonetti (Rochester, NY/Our Lady of Mercy) has a team-best 3.56 digs per set, while
Paige Daly (Allison Park, PA/Hampton) and
Kathryn Vogl (West Seneca, NY/St. Mary's) have recorded 43 service aces apiece.
Vassar finished the regular season with a 15-9 overall record, while going 4-3 in league play. The Brewers advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2017. Devan Gallagher leads the Brewers with 338 kills (3.76/set) to go along with 301 digs and 42 service aces. Annie MacMillan has a team-best 879 assists (10.1/set). Defensively, Anna Zucchero is averaging 4.85 digs per set for Vassar, while Jennifer Kerbs has 50 blocks (0.54/set).
Top-seeded Ithaca is ranked 19th in the most recent American Volleyball Coaches Association national poll. The Bombers were a perfect 7-0 in league play and went 18-6 during the regular season. Ithaca advanced to the NCAA National Semifinals last season and is in its second season as a member of the Liberty League. Reagan Stone leads the Bombers and is in the top-10 nationally with 398 kills and 4.42 kills per set. Setter Caitlyn Floyd is second in the league and top-20 nationally with 10.63 assists per set. Defensively, Tara Stilwell leads Ithaca with 419 digs and Katie Evans has 54 blocks.
Clarkson is the six-time defending Liberty League Champion and enters the tournament with a 16-10 record, having finished 4-3 in league play. Rachel Reusch leads the Golden Knights with 370 kills (3.52/set) and 107 blocks (1.02/set), while Amanda Collins has a team-best 732 assists (8.13/set). Defensively, Kate Isasksen leads the nation with 859 digs and is second with 8.18 digs per set).
The Tigers defeated Vassar in five sets at Clark Gym on Oct. 19 and knocked off Clarkson on the road in four sets, Sept. 21. The Tigers fell to Ithaca in four sets on Oct. 10.
The 2018 Liberty League Champion will receive an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championship. RIT is looking to make its first appearance in the national tournament since 2007.
