VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton (11-6, 2-1 America East) begins a two-match home weekend Friday when first-year conference member Bryant (12-8, 2-1 AE) makes its first-ever trip to West Gym. First serve is set for 7 p.m. and the match will be broadcast on ESPN3. Both matches will feature the America East "Food Frenzy" program as fans are encouraged to bring canned goods for the local food pantry. The Binghamton Student-Athlete Advisory Committee is coordinating the initiative, with volleyball standout
Jessie Bilello providing leadership as a member of the SAAC E-Board.
The Bearcats and Bulldogs are tied for second in the standings with seven matches remaining in the regular season, including a return head-to-head battle in Rhode Island next month.
Binghamton is coming off a 3-1 loss to reigning Patriot League champion Colgate on Wednesday. Before that, BU split two matches last weekend, dropping a 3-2 thriller to league-leading UMBC at West Gym before handling NJIT 3-0 on the road. The Bearcats lead the America East in hitting (.237), blocks (2.61/set) and digs (14.66/set). They also are tops in opponent attack percentage, limiting foes to a .163 percentage, which ranks 19th in the country.
Junior hitter
Tsvetelina Ilieva is third in the conference in kills (3.59/set) and points (4.31/set) and fourth in aces (25). Senior
Anna Sprys (1.23/set) and junior
Stephanie Gatto (1.20/set) rank 1-2 in the America East in blocks, giving the Bearcats a formidable presence at the net. Sprys enjoyed a strong match at Colgate, compiling 11 kills and a team-high eight blocks.
Bryant is coming off an exceptional weekend that produced a pair of 3-0 sweeps of America East powers Albany (3-0) and New Hampshire (3-0). The Bulldogs began their first America East season with a 3-0 loss to two-time reigning champion UMBC. Bryant was a strong program in the Northeast Conference and won the regular season title last fall with a 12-2 mark. They return most of the key contributors from a 21-11 team that reached the NEC championship match. Bryant was picked to tie for third in the America East Coaches' Preseason Poll (BU was picked fifth). They rank second in the conference in both kills (12.36/set) and dig (14.25/set). Three all-conference players return for the Bulldogs: three-time All-NEC selection Caroline Kennedy, first team selection Riley James and setter Mia Cergol (reigning AE Setter of the Week). Alysa Wright is the current AE Player of the Week after keying the two-match sweep last weekend.
Bryant leads the all-time series with Binghamton 6-1 and has won the last four meetings, including a 3-0 sweep in 2019. This will be the first-ever meeting in Vestal between the two programs.
After Friday, BU remains at home to welcome UNH at 1 p.m. Sunday.
