Bird's Eye View - 2019 Women's Volleyball

Historic – that’s one word that comes to mind when thinking back on the 2019 women’s volleyball season.

With talent at every position, the Cardinals had a season for the ages in 2019 after going undefeated in conference play en route to the team’s first-ever Empire 8 Championship and its first appearance in the NCAA Division III Championship in over two decades. The team’s success translated into plenty of recognition too with All-Conference, All-Region and All-American selections. 

Here are the top moments from Fisher’s season:

Aug. 25, 2019: Cardinals Set to Make Debut on Friday in Ohio

The St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team has its eyes set on an Empire 8 championship as the 2019 season is set to tip off on Friday when they Cardinals head to Capital University for four matches as part of the Pam Briggs Classic in Columbus, Ohio.

Fisher, which is coming off its third consecutive trip to the Empire 8 Championship this past fall, features perhaps its most well-rounded lineup in recent memory as head coach Kelly Greapentrog's team boasts a strong corps of returners bolstered by one of the strongest incoming classes in team history.

"I'm excited to build on the progress we have made over the last two seasons," stated Greapentrog who has amassed nearly 200 wins over her career.  "We have a deep and talented roster, but we are a young team and we are working hard to learn our system and get adjusted to the collegiate game. Our first weekend in Ohio will be a great opportunity for us to measure where we are as a team." 

COMPLETE RELEASE

Aug. 31, 2019: Steigerwald Comes Out Swinging - Breaks Own Program Record

Sophomore outside hitter Alea Steigerwald of the St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team broke her own program record on Saturday as the Penfield native put down 33 kills on the second day of play at the Pam Briggs Memorial Volleyball Classic at Capital University.

Sept. 13, 2019: Cardinals Sweep John Carroll to Spark 11-Match Winning Streak

The St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team opened up play at the Buffalo State Bengal Invite on Friday night with a straight-sets win against John Carroll University (25-23, 25-23, 26-24). Sophomore Alea Steigerwald had a game-high 19 kills while freshman Lauren Gilbert added 10 kills with a .375 hitting percentage.

COMPLETE RELEASE

Sept. 21, 2019: Take Two - Fisher Wins Twice as Part of Senior Day

The St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team earned a pair of straight set wins on Saturday to go 3-0 at the SJFC Invite inside the Manning and Napier Varsity Gym. The Cardinals started the day off by defeating Northern Vermont-Johnson (25-13, 25-15, 25-23) and then finished off the invite with a victory against D'Youville (25-17, 25-14, 25-15). 
 
Fisher extends their winning streak to six with their record at 9-5. Sophomore Alea Steigerwald led all players in both matches with 17 and 14 kills respectively. Junior Rebecca Hay recorded 63 assists combined over the two matches. Before their match against D'Youville, the Cardinals honored their senior class of Izzy Smith, Olivia Levulis and Emily Risch. 

COMPLETE RELEASE

Sept. 27, 2019: Offensive Onslaught Powers Women's Volleyball Past Utica in E8 Opener

In its first conference game of the 2019 season, the St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team traveled to Utica College Friday evening and came away with a 3-0 sweep (25-4, 25-13, 25-19) over the Pioneers. With the win, the Cardinals are 10-5 overall and 1-0 in the Empire Eight while Utica drops to 2-15 overall and 0-1 in league play.

Freshman Lauren Gilbert led all players with 12 kills and 10 digs. Junior Rebecca Hay added a game-high 37 assists while Freshman Alexis Mancha had a career-high six services aces.

The Cardinals got off to a blistering 6-0 start to begin the first set. A nine-point run on Mancha's serve put Fisher in prime position, up 17-2. An Elly Hepburn kill sealed the deal as the Cardinals won by a whopping 21 points in the opening frame. As a team, the Cardinals had 17 kills with zero errors and an incredible .895 hitting percentage in the first set.

COMPLETE RELEASE

Oct. 2, 2019: Cardinals Blank Naz for First Win Over Golden Flyers Since 2005

In the annual "Battle of the Beaks" the St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team traveled across town to Nazareth College and won in a straight sets sweep (25-11, 25-21, 25-22) over the Golden Flyers. It was Fisher's first win versus Nazareth since 2005. The Cardinals' ninth-straight victory puts them at 12-5 overall and at the top of the Empire 8 conference standings with a 3-0 league record.

Sophomore Alea Steigerwald shined with a game-high 15 kills and 11 digs. Freshman Lauren Gilbert added 11 kills while junior Rebecca Hay paced the Cardinals with 28 assists and a season-high four service aces.

COMPLETE RELEASE

Oct. 12, 2019: Hay Surpasses 2,000 Career Assists in Win Over Houghton

The St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team knocked off Houghton College by a score of three sets to one (23-25, 25-16, 26-24, 25-21) on Friday night at Manning and Napier Varsity Gym. The win moves the Empire 8-leading Cardinals to a 15-6 overall record and 4-0 in conference play. The Highlanders, winners of their last seven heading into tonight, fall to 14-4 and 2-1 against E8 opponents.

Sophomore Alea Steigerwald brought her A-game with 27 kills and a .479 hitting percentage in the game, the Penfield native's second-highest total kills in a game this year. Junior Rebecca Hay put up 46 assists, her second-highest total in a game this season while also surpassing two thousand career assists.

COMPLETE RELEASE

Oct. 12, 2019: Cardinals Clinch Postseason Berth in Thrilling Win

The St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team rallied to take down the Alfred Saxons on the road Saturday afternoon by a score of three sets to two (17-25, 25-22, 20-25, 25-18, 15-13). The win secured a spot in the Empire 8 conference tournament for the Cardinals as they sit in first place in the standings with a record of 5-0 in league play and 16-6 overall. Alfred moves to 6-15 on the year with a 0-4 record in conference.

Junior Rebecca Hay had an impressive day with a game-high 46 assists and a season-high 18 digs. Sophomore Alea Steigerwald led Fisher with 16 kills while freshman Lindsey DeBonis contributed a career-high 15 kills with a game-high .387 hitting percentage.

COMPLETE RELEASE

Oct. 25, 2019: Fisher Earns E8 Regular Season Title With Victory Over Elmira

The St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team defeated Elmira College in straight-sets (25-11, 25-19, 25-23) Friday night at Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium. With the win, the Cardinals clinched the Empire 8 Regular Season Title for the first time in program history and the number one seed in the conference postseason tournament. 
 
Freshman Lauren Gilbert had a game-high 14 kills for Fisher. Junior Rebecca Hay led the way with 33 assists while sophomore Julia Halsey recorded a team-high 14 digs. Fisher moves to 19-8 overall and a 6-0 record in league play. Elmira drops to 11-13 on the season with a 4-2 E8 record. 

COMPLETE RELEASE

Oct. 26, 2019: Cardinals Complete Undefeated Conference Season With Win Over Hartwick

The St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team defeated Hartwick College three sets-to-one (25-15, 25-21, 21-25, 25-23) Saturday at Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium. The Cardinals, who already clinched the E8 Regular Season Championship Friday, finished their conference schedule with a perfect 7-0 record while moving to 20-8 overall. Hartwick drops to 13-10 on the year with a 3-4 record in league play.

Sophomore Alea Steigerwald led all players with 15 kills and 19 digs. Junior Rebecca Hay put up a game-high 40 assists. Also in double-figures in kills were freshmen Lindsey DeBonis and Lauren Gilbert who had 13 and 12 kills, respectively.

COMPLETE RELEASE

Nov. 6, 2019: Cardinals Prep to Host Empire 8 Championship

For the first time in program history, the St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team will host the Empire 8 Championship as the conference title and an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championship will be on the line. The Cardinals, who went a perfect 7-0 against E8 opponents this season will face No. 4 Elmira at 5 p.m. on Friday in the semifinal round of play. In the other semifinal, No. 2 Houghton goes head-to-head with No. 3 Nazareth at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. The winner of each match will meet at 2 p.m. on Saturday in the Championship round. All tournament matches will take place at Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium. 

COMPLETE RELEASE

Nov. 8, 2019: Fisher Downs Elmira in Wire-to-Wire Fashion to Advance to E8 Final

The St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team defeated the Elmira College Soaring Eagles by straight-sets (25-12, 25-21, 25-16) in the semifinal round of the Empire 8 Championships at Manning and Napier Varsity Gym. The win advances the Cardinals (22-10) to the conference championship final while Elmira ends its season with a record of 13-16.

Sophomore Alea Steigerwald finished with a game-high 18 kills and a team-high 12 digs while hitting .394 on the day. Junior Rebecca Hay led all players with 33 assists and freshman Lauren Gilbert had a solid debut in her first postseason game of her collegiate career with nine kills and 10 digs.

COMPLETE RELEASE

Nov. 9, 2019: Cardinals Win First-Ever E8 Championship; Advance to NCAAs

The St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team captured the Empire 8 Championship for the first time in program history while earning an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Tournament with a 3-1 win (25-13, 25-27, 25-17, 25-15) against the Nazareth College Golden Flyers on Saturday afternoon at Manning and Napier Varsity Gym.

E8 Tournament Most Valuable Player Alea Steigerwald had a stellar performance in the tournament final with 14 kills, a game-high 21 digs and a .263 hitting percentage. The freshman pair of Lindsey DeBonis and Lauren Gilbert also shined with DeBonis posting a game-high 15 kills and Gilbert adding 14 kills of her own. Junior Rebecca Hay reached the 40-assist mark for the first time in five games with a game-high 41 on the day.

The win gives the Cardinals 23 on the year, the most victories in a single season for the program since 1998, which was also the last year they appeared in the NCAA Tournament. Nazareth ends its season with a record of 13-18.

COMPLETE RELEASE

Nov. 11, 2019: Clean Sweep! Fisher Earns Three Major Awards and Slew of All-Conference Recognition

After winning the Empire 8 Championship for the first time in program history, five members of the St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team have been awarded by the E8 in its All-Conference Honors as announced by the conference on Monday. The Cardinals won three major awards with sophomore Alea Steigerwald earning Player of the Year, freshman Lauren Gilbert taking home Rookie of the Year and Head Coach Kelly Greapentrog tabbed as Coach of the Year. 

COMPLETE RELEASE

Nov. 14, 2019: Cardinals Ready to Make First NCAA Appearance in 21 Years

Head Coach Kelly Greapentrog's squad rolled its way over the Empire 8 by going undefeated against conference competition during the regular season. The Cardinals then took down Elmira in straight sets in the tournament semifinals on Friday, November 8th and then defeated Nazareth Saturday, November 9th by a score of 3-1. Sophomore Alea Steigerwald, who was named E8 Player of the Year was also selected as the Tournament Most Valuable Player. 

COMPLETE RELEASE

Nov. 19, 2019: Steigerwald Repeats as All-American Following Brilliant 2019 Season

The accolades continued to roll in for outside hitter Alea Steigerwald of the St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team as the Penfield native was named Honorable Mention All-American on Tuesday by the American Volleyball Coaches Association for the second consecutive season.

Steigerwald, who was named All-Region by the AVCA last week, put together another prodigious year as she was named the Empire 8 Player of the Year for the second consecutive season after having earned that honor and a Rookie of the Year selection in 2018.

The sophomore played in 33 matches this season and 114 sets where she broke her own program record for kills in a single season with 501 in all.  Steigerwald led the Empire 8 and currently ranks eighth in Division III in both total kills and kills per set at 4.39.  She also led the conference and ranks seventh in points per set after averaging 5.17 this season.

COMPLETE RELEASE