No. 2 Women's Volleyball Hosts No. 6 Brockport In E8 Semifinals

 Last Match: Fisher 3, Geneseo 1

• The No. 2-seeded St. John Fisher women's volleyball team hit .372 as a team in a 3-1 victory over No. 7-seeded SUNY Geneseo in the opening round of the Empire 8 Women's Volleyball Championship on Tuesday night at Manning and Napier Varsity Gym. 
• The Cardinals won the first set by 10, 25-15, before falling 25-23 in the second. They dominated the Knights 25-9 in the third and 25-16 in the fourth. 
• The Cardinals hit over .300 for the second time in their last three matches. They have done that five times overall this season. 
• Their .372 hitting percentage marked their third-highest of the season. The Cardinals hit .346 in set one, .344 in set two, .471 in set three and .310 in set four. 
• Fisher's 55 kills marked their third most in a match this season. It was their sixth contest this season with more than 50. 
• Freshman outside hitter Lydia Fraser had 16 kills and hit .324. She accounted for 19.5 points. She also had three service aces and a team-high 17 digs.
• Sophomore middle blocker Ana Gutman had 14 kills and hit .619. She has hit over .400 in 13 of Fisher's matches this season. 
• Junior libero Kiera Hartpence had three service aces and 16 digs. 
• Junior setter Reilly Morrow tied her season high with 46 assists. She has recorded 40 or more assists in six matches this season. 

Lydia Fraser Named E8 Rookie Of the Year, Four Others Earn All-Conference Honors

St. John Fisher freshman outside hitter Lydia Fraser became the ninth player in school history to be named Empire 8 Women’s Volleyball Rookie of the Year on Wednesday when the conference office announced its accolades for the 2024 season.

First-Team All-Empire 8: Lydia Fraser, Ana Gutman
Second-Team All-Empire 8: Reilly Morrow, Kaylene Noble
Third-Team All-Empire 8: Kiera Hartpence
St. John Fisher/Empire 8 Sportswoman of the Year: Madalyn Bouton

Top Fisher Notes To Know

• The Cardinals lead the Empire 8 in assists (1,081), kills (1,187) and service aces (262).
• Sophomore outside hitter Ana Gutman leads the Empire 8 and ranks 12th nationally in hitting percentage (.388). She hit a scorching .434 against Empire 8 opponenets in the regular season.
• Gutman has hit .400 or better in 13 of Fisher's matches this season.
• Freshman outside hitter Lydia Fraser has 297 kills (second on the team, 5th in the Empire 8) and 46 service aces (most on the team).
• Sophomore outside hitter Kaylene Noble leads the Cardinals with 309 kills on the season (third in the Empire 8).
• Junior setter Reilly Morrow is third in the Empire 8 with 744 assists.
• She passed Bridget Martin (1989-1992) for 10th in program history in career assists in October. 
• Junior libero Kiera Hartpence has the third-most digs in the conference (408). She crossed the 1,000-career dig mark earlier this season. 

 With A Win In The E8 Title Game, The Cardinals Would…

• The Cardinals would advance to the Empire 8 Conference title game for the fourth time in program history. 
• The Cardinals would face No. 4 Houghton or No. 1 Nazareth on Saturday. 
• The Cardinals would host the title match if Houghton beats Nazareth on Thursday night. 

Series Notes

• Brockport beat the Cardinals in four sets (3-1) on Oct. 4. The Cardinals lost three sets in a row after winning the first set 25-13.
• The Cardinals have won three of the last four meetings in the series. 
• Fisher is 8-11 all-time against Brockport dating back to 2008.

2024 Empire 8 Women’s Volleyball Championship Participants
No. 1 – Nazareth University (10-1)
No. 2 – St. John Fisher University (9-2)
No. 3 – Hartwick College (9-2)
No. 4 – Houghton University (7-4)
No. 5 – Alfred University (7-4)
No. 6 – SUNY Brockport (7-4)
No. 7 – SUNY Geneseo (6-5)
No. 8 – Russell Sage College (4-7)
 
2024 Empire 8 Women’s Volleyball Schedule
 
Tuesday, November 12  (Quarterfinals at Higher Seed)
No. 1 Nazareth defeated No. 8 Russell Sage, 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-15) – BOX SCORE
No. 2 St. John Fisher defeated No 7 SUNY Geneseo, 3-1 (25-15, 23-25, 25-9, 25-16) – BOX SCORE
No. 6 SUNY Brockport defeated No. 3 Hartwick, 3-1 (25-21, 18-25, 25-20, 25-23) – BOX SCORE
No. 4 Houghton defeated No. 5 Alfred, 3-0 (25-19, 25-14, 25-19) – BOX SCORE

Thursday, November 14 (Semifinals at Higher Seed)
No. 6 SUNY Brockport at No. 2 St. John FIsher – 6 p.m. – VIDEO/LIVE STATS
No. 4 Houghton at No. 1 Nazareth – 7 p.m. – VIDEO/LIVE STATS
 
Saturday, November 16 (Championship)
Winner of Semifinal 1 vs. Winner of Semifinal 2 at Highest Remaining Seed - TBA – VIDEO/LIVE STATS

About the Empire 8 Conference

The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit www.empire8.com and YouTube.