LOCATION: Alico Arena – Fort Myers, Fla.
 
SHORT STORY: The Great Danes began the season with a win over NDSU before falling in four sets to UIC, Friday.
 
COACH JOSH PICKARD: "This was a good opening day. The team has worked hard on our side of the net and I saw a lot of flashes of that today. We played together and really worked hard for the person next to us. Our goal is to stack good on top of good and we saw that today."

GAME ONE
 
SCORE: UAlbany 3, NDSU 0 (25-21, 25-23, 25-16)
 
RECORDS: UAlbany 1-0, 0-0 AE | NDSU 0-1, 0-0 The Summit League
 
KEY STATS

• Redshirt-junior Shynelle Woroniuk led both teams with 15 kills for a .273 hitting percentage.
• Freshman Maria Olga Siapani facilitated 34 assists driving the team's offensive tempo.
• Defensively, the team accumulated 41 digs, with senior Sthefany Carvalho leading with 15 digs.
• UAlbany tallied 4.0 total team blocks, contributing to their defensive efforts at the net.
• The team served effectively with a total of 3 service aces, each coming from different players.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• UAlbany started strong in the first set, maintaining a close score with several lead changes in the beginning.
• Pulling ahead with an 8-1 scoring run, the Great Danes held a seven-point lead, 15-8, midway through the set.
• Despite North Dakota State's efforts to overtake the Purple and Gold, UAlbany pulled ahead to win the first set, 25-21.
• The Great Danes earned an early 6-4 lead before NDSU grabbed a 7-1 scoring run for a 13-9 advantage.
• After trading points back and forth, UAlbany pulled ahead at the end of the set with five consecutive points to win, 25-23.
• Continuing their strong competition, the Great Danes jumped ahead in the third set, 12-8.
• After the Bison tied the set at 12, UAlbany put together five straight points with Shynelle Woroniuk serving.
• The Great Danes finished out the set strong tallying a 6-1 scoring run to win, 25-16, and sweep NDSU for their first game of the season.

GAME TWO
 
SCORE: UIC 3, UAlbany 1 (25-23, 25-16, 16-25, 25-18)
 
RECORDS: UAlbany 1-1, 0-0 AE | UIC 1-0, 0-0 MVC
 
KEY STATS

• Shynelle Woroniuk led the team with 16 kills for the second consecutive match.
• Two Great Danes totaled double-digit digs - Sthefany Carvalho (14) and graduate student Elisavet Papageorgiou (10).
• Setter Maria Olga Siapani totaled 33 assists while leading the team with two service aces.
• Redshirt-sophomore Gabriella Karman blocked three attacks. Woroniuk added two block assists.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• It was a true back-and-forth contest to begin the first set.
• Tied at 15, the Great Danes pulled ahead for an 18-15 lead.
• UIC closed the first set with a 6-1 scoring run to take the 25-23 set victory.
• Gradually gaining a lead throughout the beginning of the second set, UIC notched a 7-1 scoring run to earn a six-point lead.
• Despite UAlbany's best efforts, a late-set 7-1 scoring run from the Flames made it 24-13 and UIC finished with a second-set win, 25-16.
• The tides turned and the Great Danes opened the third set with a 9-2 scoring run for a 9-4 lead.
• Adding a 7-1 scoring run, UAlbany extended their lead to 17-8.
• The Flames attempted to make a comeback with three consecutive points but a final scoring run from the Great Danes secured the 25-16 win for UAlbany.
• In what proved to be the final set, UIC gained a quick 8-2 lead.
• Eight consecutive points and UAlbany was on top, 13-11.
• The Flames answered with an 8-1 scoring run to take a 19-14 advantage.
• After going back and forth, UIC ended the set with a win, 25-18, for the match win, 3-1.

 
NEXT: The Great Danes will close out the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Fort Myers Classic against the host, FGCU, on Saturday at 11:00 am.
 
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