ALBANY, N.Y. -Â The UAlbany volleyball team is set to open postseason play with a semifinal matchup in the 2025 America East Championship Tournament.
This year, the America East Volleyball Tournament is hosted by top-seeded UMBC at the Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena in Baltimore, Md. UMBC earned the number one seed and is set to face the four-seeded Binghamton at 4:00 p.m. on Friday. UAlbany, the third seed, will face second-seeded Bryant on Friday at 8:00 p.m. with a berth in the championship match at stake.
For more information on the tournament, including schedules, links, and coverage, click here.
GAME INFORMATION
America East Semifinal - #3 UAlbany vs #2 Bryant
DATE: Friday, November 21
TIME: 8:00 PM
SITE: Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena - Baltimore, Md.
RECORDS: UAlbany 13-11, 6-4 America East | Bryant 16-11, 7-3 America East
STREAM (USA):Â ESPN+
STREAM (Int'l):Â AE.TV
STATS:Â UMBCRetrievers.com
TICKETS:Â UMBCTickets.com
America East Championship - #1/#4 vs #2/#3
DATE: Saturday, November 22
TIME: 4:00 PM
SITE: Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena - Baltimore, Md.
STREAM (USA):Â ESPN+
STREAM (Int'l):Â AE.TV
STATS:Â UMBCRetrievers.com
TICKETS:Â UMBCTickets.com
(records as of 11.20)
CONFERENCE ACTION REVIEW
UAlbany finished the America East schedule at 6-4, collecting wins over Binghamton, NJIT, New Hampshire, Bryant, and UMBC. The Great Danes opened conference play with a sweep of Binghamton and added back-to-back home victories over NJIT and New Hampshire. UAlbany closed the regular season by sweeping UMBC to secure the third seed.
Throughout league play, sophomore setter Maria Olga Siapani controlled the offense with the highest assist average in the conference. Graduate outside hitter Shynelle Woroniuk delivered multiple double-digit scoring performances, including several matches with 15 or more kills. Redshirt-junior middle blocker Gabriella Karman added an important spark this season in the front row, totaling over 100 blocks for the Great Danes and a team-high .345 hitting percentage.
GREAT DANE REWIND
UAlbany enters the America East Tournament at 13-11 overall with an 8-1 home record, 2-7 road record, and a 3-3 mark at neutral sites. Throughout the fall, the Great Danes built momentum by stacking important wins at key points in the season.
The season opened with two sweeps at the Rocket Invitational against Saint Francis and Robert Morris before returning home for the UAlbany Invitational, where the Danes earned wins over Cornell and Canisius. During September, UAlbany faced a challenging stretch of non-conference opponents, including Syracuse, Dartmouth, Sacramento State, an undefeated Boston College, Texas Tech, and Ole Miss. The team collected a 3-0 win against Dartmouth and a competitive five-set match at Boston College.
Conference play began with a strong 3-0 win over Binghamton at home. After close road matches at Bryant and New Hampshire, the Great Danes responded with home wins over Siena and NJIT. A key moment came on October 14 with a 3-1 road win at Colgate, followed by a 3-1 victory at UMBC on October 18. The group carried that momentum into late October with a sweep of New Hampshire at home and a reverse sweep win over Bryant. UAlbany finished the regular season by sweeping UMBC 3-0 on senior night.
IN THE AMERICA EAST
(as of 11.20)
According to the America East cumulative statistics, the Great Danes rank:
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1st - 16.15 digs per set
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2nd - 1.17 service aces per set
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2nd - 1.75 opponent blocks per set
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3rd - 16.07 points per set
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3rd - .223 hitting percentage
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3rd - .219 opponent hitting percentage
The Great Danes have at least one player in the rankings among the America East for every major stat category:
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Hitting Percentage:
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Assists/Set:
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Blocks/Set:
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Kills/Set:
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Service Aces/Set:
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Digs/Set:
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Points/Set:
ABOUT #2 BRYANT
Bryant enters the America East Tournament as the number two seed after finishing the regular season 16-11 overall and 7-3 in conference play, including key wins over New Hampshire, Binghamton, NJIT, and UAlbany. The Bulldogs showed balance throughout their schedule with a 7-4 record at home, six wins on the road, and a 3-3 mark at neutral sites.
The Bulldogs are led by America East Player of the Year Arianna Ugolini, who has been one of the top offensive performers in the conference. She closed the regular season with 402 kills, 3.94 kills per set, and 459 total points, while also contributing 43 service aces and 250 digs across 102 sets played.
Bryant's offense is supported by additional steady production from Ruth Ochelli with 193 kills, Kaitlin Curran with 196 kills, and Brookelyn Talmadge with 177 kills. Setter Madison Koeller has directed the attack with 780 assists, averaging 8.57 assists per set. As a team, the Bulldogs average 13.3 kills per set with a .229 hitting percentage while adding 12.1 assists, 2.0 aces, and 14.2 digs per set.
SERIES AGAINST THE BULLDOGS
Bryant holds a 5-4 advantage in the all-time series since joining the America East. The two teams split their regular-season meetings this fall, with Bryant winning 3-1 in Smithfield on September 28 and UAlbany responding with a reverse sweep victory on October 26 in Albany.
The most recent matchup featured one of UAlbany's strongest home performances of the year, as the Great Danes rallied after dropping the first two sets to take the final three. Earlier in the year, Bryant controlled the scoring in both opening sets during the match in Rhode Island before closing the fourth set to secure the win.
ABOUT #1 UMBC
UMBC enters the America East Tournament as the number one seed after finishing the regular season 11-11 overall and 7-3 in conference play. The Retrievers collected important wins over NJIT, Bryant, Binghamton, and New Hampshire, along with a road victory at Bryant and a 3-0 sweep of NJIT late in the season, giving them one of the strongest conference resumes in the league.
The Retrievers are led by America East Defensive Player of the Year Hannah Howard, who finished the regular season with 387 digs and averaged 4.35 digs per set. UMBC also features strong offensive production from Jalynn Brown with 304 kills and 3.45 kills per set, supported by steady contributions from Hannah Dobbs, Claudia Llamas, and setters Serin Maden and Izzy Ostvig, who combined for more than 900 assists.
UMBC averaged 12.57 kills, 11.90 assists, and 14.01 digs per set during the regular season and won seven conference matches in a nine-match stretch. With multiple all-conference performers and the America East Coaching Staff of the Year guiding the group, the Retrievers enter the postseason as a consistent and well-rounded top seed.
SERIES AGAINST THE RETRIEVERS
UAlbany leads the all-time series 37-16. The Great Danes claimed both meetings this fall, with a 3-1 road win in Baltimore on October 18 before sweeping UMBC 3-0 in Albany on November 14.
In the first matchup, UAlbany pulled away late in sets three and four to take control after UMBC evened the match in the second set. The rematch in Albany featured one of UAlbany's strongest home performances of the season, as the Danes held steady leads throughout all three sets and limited UMBC's scoring runs from the service line.
ABOUT #4 BINGHAMTON
Binghamton enters the America East Tournament as the fourth seed with a 12-13 overall record and a 6-4 mark in conference play. The Bearcats collected key wins throughout the year, including victories over UMBC, New Hampshire, NJIT, and UAlbany at home. They finished 7-6 at home, 3-5 on the road, and 2-2 at neutral sites, with several matches decided in five sets.
The Bearcats are led by Merima Smajlovic, who ended the regular season with 334 kills and 3.52 kills per set, one of the highest averages in the America East. Viktoria Dimitrova added 234 kills and 3.44 kills per set, while Maya Coblentz-Brown contributed 244 kills on a .273 hitting percentage. Setting duties were primarily handled by Regan Kadel and Alexandra Koleva, who combined for more than 990 assists.
As a team, Binghamton averaged 12.77 kills, 11.88 assists, and 15.03 digs per set, with strong blocking production led by Smajlovic, Dimitrova, and Coblentz-Brown. The Bearcats won four of their final six matches entering the tournament, including a sweep of New Hampshire on November 14.
SERIES AGAINST THE BEARCATS
UAlbany leads the all-time series 30-13. The teams split their regular-season meetings in 2025, with the Great Danes sweeping Binghamton 3-0 in Albany on September 26 before the Bearcats won 3-1 in Vestal on October 31.
The first matchup featured steady scoring from UAlbany across all three sets, while the rematch in Vestal saw Binghamton take control late in the opening two sets before holding off the Great Danes in the fourth. Both meetings reflected the competitive nature of the matchup, especially late in the season as both teams battled for seeding.
Last year, UAlbany upset top-seeded Binghamton in the America East Semifinals as the number four seed, advancing to the championship match for the first time since 2019. With another tournament meeting possible, both programs enter this postseason with a recent history of high-stakes battles.
AMERICA EAST TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Friday, November 21 - Semifinals
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#4 Binghamton at #1 UMBC, 4:00 PM
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#3 UAlbany vs #2 Bryant, 8:00 PM
Saturday, November 22
NEXT:Â The winner of the America East Championship will claim an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The selection show is on Sunday, November 30, at 6:00 PM.
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