DELHI, N.Y. (October 29, 2021) – SUNY Delhi gears up for highly-anticipated league action entering the North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Western Division Women's Soccer and Women's Volleyball Tournaments this Saturday, Oct. 30 and Sunday, Oct. 31. Both Broncos squads clinched the top seed in the NAC West with wins during their conference regular season finales this past weekend. Women's soccer posted a 10-5 overall record, including 7-1 in all NAC competition and 4-0 in division play. Women's volleyball completed their regular season with a perfect 8-0 conference record and 20-5 overall.
WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL…
LINKS: LIVE VIDEO | NAC CHAMPIONSHIP DIGITAL PROGRAM
NAC WEST TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Saturday, Oct. 30: #1 SUNY Delhi vs. #4 Cazenovia – 3pm (LIVE STATS), #2 SUNY Cobleskill vs. #3 SUNY Poly – 5pm (LIVE STATS)
Sunday, Oct. 31: Winner of 1/4 vs. Winner of 2/3 – 2pm
COACH'S COMMENTS...
"We're looking forward to hosting the NAC West playoffs, while making the most of the opportunity to compete for the division title." – Head Coach Beau Bracchy
Delhi entered the 2021 campaign ranked tied for first in the NAC West Preseason Poll. Following an 0-2 start, the SUNY Delhi women's volleyball team showed their tenacity getting a five-set first win at Sarah Lawrence, stretching their win streak to as many as eight, and finishing the regular season with seven consecutive wins. The Broncos captured their first 20-win season since 2010 and first in their modern NCAA Division III era with a 20-5 mark entering postseason play. The team reached the conference playoffs in 2019 in their first year in the NAC. Back from that squad is senior middle hitter Witchney Clersainville, who has been twice named a NAC Defender of the Week this year and leads the team with 49 blocks (15 solo) and third with 145 kills.
The junior class of Lexi Taylor, Chloe Elsenbeck, Marie Julian, and Gabriela Kralik are also returners from the 2019 NAC playoff team, in which Taylor and Julian were NAC Rookie of the Week choices. Taylor is the only Bronco to appear in every set this season and has turned on the afterburners during the final stretch of the season. Through the final four regular-season matches, Taylor only committed one attack error on 27 kills, giving her a team-best .237 attack percentage with 126 total kills, along with 29 total blocks, including two solo.
Setter Grace Thomas earned NAC Player of the Week back in September, as her season numbers gives her a team-leading 627 assists and 46 service aces. She ranks second with 208 digs, while adding 91 kills and nine total blocks, including one solo. Freshman Rebecca Heuler, mainly utilized at libero, leads the digs column for the Broncos with 379 and second with 39 service aces, earning two NAC Defender of the Week honors. Bailee Jones was a NAC Defender of the Week choice in early September, ranking third on the defensive end with 203 digs and fourth with 16 block assists. On the offensive side Jones ranks second with 152 kills and third with 34 service aces.
The Broncos posted two-match victories over each of the NAC West Tournament participants towards a perfect 8-0 conference mark, including a pair of three-set sweeps against their Saturday foe Cazenovia and third-seed SUNY Poly, while defeating two-seed SUNY Cobleskill with two four-set decisions. The NAC East playoff picture includes first-seed Maine Maritime hosting four-seed Maine Presque Isle, then the two seed NVU Johnson taking on third-seed Husson.
WOMEN'S SOCCER...
LINKS: LIVE VIDEO | NAC CHAMPIONSHIP DIGITAL PROGRAM (COMING SOON)
NAC WEST TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Saturday, Oct. 30: #1 SUNY Delhi vs. #4 SUNY Poly – 11am (LIVE STATS), #2 Cazenovia vs. #3 SUNY Canton– 1:30pm
Sunday, Oct. 31: Winner of 1/4 vs. Winner of 2/3 – 12pm
COACH'S COMMENTS...
"We were voted preseason number one in the NAC West so the goal and expectation from the beginning was to finish atop the table and host the division playoffs. You know, we've had the saying all season long: 'Take Care of Business.' We still have a job to do and we've got business to take care of this weekend. I think as group we're in a really good spot. We all know our jobs and roles within the team and it's all about maintaining that sharpness. We aren't looking or thinking about 'What If.' At this point it's about 'Why Not?' We've come this far so why not go ahead and keep winning?" - Head Coach Zach Ward
The memories of the 2019 SUNY Delhi women's soccer team that reached the NAC Semifinals are still fresh in the team's mind this season. Not only because the bulk of that roster is back from that season, but also because first-year head coach Zach Ward was coaching against the Broncos back then as an assistant coach at eventual NAC champion Maine Maritime Academy. The Mariners needed to get past the Broncos twice that year on their way to the league title, doing so with an overtime win in the regular season and a one-goal victory in the semifinals. It was that experience where Coach Ward commented that SUNY Delhi was a team to look out for in the future, and a major opportunity when offered to take over the program this summer.
Ward's premonition was validated when the Broncos were voted first in the NAC West Preseason Poll, and the team lived up to expectations with a 4-0 division record and finishing 10-5 overall and 7-1 across all NAC play. Seniors Alexa DuBois and Rachael Scoones twice earned NAC weekly nods this season, with the midfielder DuBois earning Player of the Week and goalkeeper Scoones Defender of the Week. DuBois leads the program with 26 points on 12 points and two assists, including four multi-goal games with two hat tricks. Her two-goal game against Maine Farmington on Sept. 26 made the difference in Delhi's 2-1 NAC victory. Scoones holds a 9-5 record in net this season, posting a 1.24 goals-against average with a .846 save percentage and four complete-game shutouts.
Kelsey Innes ranks second with 18 points on six goals and six assists, coming on strong in the assists column during Delhi's final three matches. She had one goal and one assist Oct. 16 in a 6-1 win at SUNY Poly, then contributed one assist in the Broncos' 2-0 victory at Bard on Oct. 19 and assisting the opening score in their 2-1 win over SUNY Canton on Oct. 23. Defender Olivia Curry has been the heart of Delhi's defense that allowed just 19 goals (including one penalty kick) in a 15-match regular season and keeping scoring chances limited and tough when teams got in the box.
In addition to the aforementioned NAC victories, the Broncos' conference season included a 5-1 win over West-foe NVU Johnson on Sept. 18, followed by a NAC crossover victory against NVU Lyndon, 3-0, the following week. They used a pair of 1-0 decisions to defeat Cazenovia on Oct. 2 and Thomas on Oct. 10. Their only NAC defeat was 2-1 at Maine Maritime, the NAC East top seed, on Oct. 9. The NAC East playoff picture includes the top-ranked MMA Mariners facing off against fourth-seed Maine Presque Isle, followed by two-seed Husson taking on three-seeded Maine Farmington.
