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Bulls Advance to MAC Tournament as the #6 Seed


dj_paige

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Senior setter Emma Puzausky
Photo credit: Paige Miller

Buffalo defeated Akron 3–0 on Senior Night, not allowing the Zips to score 20 points in any set, and in so doing, Buffalo earns the #6 seed into the MAC Tournament. Buffalo will play #3 Ohio on Sunday at Worthen Arena at Ball State University at 7pm (ESPN+). Buffalo split two five-set matches against Ohio.

Buffalo finishes 10–8 on the season, and this is only the second time since UB joined the MAC that Buffalo has finished over 0.500 in a season. It also marks the second time in program history where Buffalo will play in the MAC Tournament "Round of 6", both times coming under head coach Scott Smith. And both times the Bulls reached the "Round of 6", the Bulls got off to a terrible start in the MAC, starting 1–5 in 2019 and 2–5 this year. Buffalo has never advanced to the MAC Semi-Finals.

The Play of the Match™­ was when senior setter Emma Puzausky was announced as the starter for the Bulls. Puzausky hasn't played much during her 4 years at UB, but she is one of the most popular players on the team. She has started only 5 matches previously during her career, and on senior night she got her only start in Alumni Arena, as Smith switched to a two setter offense for the first time all year. In her freshman and sophomore seasons, when Puzausky appeared in a two setter offense, she usually had far fewer assists than the other setter, Scout McLerran. Against Akron on senior night, Puzausky had 17 assists, which was very close to Buffalo's "other" setter (and the normal starter), sophomore Mandy Leigh, who had 19 assists. And so with Buffalo running an offense they hadn't used all year, the Bulls hit 0.295, well above their their season average of 0.227.

Buffalo's other seniors who will not be returning also got mucho playing time. Jenna Sonnenberg, from Niagara Wheatfield HS, has been a regular back row player for the Bulls during her four years, but saw only limited playing time this year. Against Akron, Sonnenberg started for the first time all season, played the entire match, and picked up 13 digs (a huge number for a defensive specialist in 3 sets), including a one-handed dig diving to her right to keep a rally going in the third set. Middle blocker Olivia DeBortoli, who has started occasionally and has been used as a sub occasionally this year, played the entire match and picked up 6 kills and zero attack errors, and led the team with 5 blocks. Fifth year outside hitter Cali Assaley has been a starter most of the year, and picked up 7 kills.

Junior right side Emma Gielas led the team with 12 kills, and committed only one attack error. Senior middle blocker Abby Leigh had 7 kills and zero attack errors. Sophomore outside hitter Katrin Trebichavská had 7 kills, just 2 attack errors, plus 2 aces and a team high 18 digs. Sophomore libero Maria Futey had 17 digs, while Mandy Leigh had 14 digs.

The eagle-eyed among you will notice that senior middle blockers Abby Leigh and Courtney Okwara, both were not honored on senior night, and are expected to return next year.

Notes:

  • Mandy Leigh entered the match averaging 10.60 assists per set, good for 29th in the NCAA. She recently moved into 9th place all time in assists on the UB career list. Her 2,212 assists in two years puts her on a pace that will put her in first place all-time for UB by the time her career ends. Her 10.19 assists per set also would be the Bulls all-time high if she keeps going at that pace.
  • Trebichavská entered the match 11th in the NCAA at 0.54 assists per set. If she continues at this pace would make her by far the UB all-time leader in aces per set in the rally scoring era.
  • Maria Futey watch: an outside hitter turned libero, Futey is averaging 4.58 digs per set since she took over the libero position, which would be fifth all-time for the Bulls (but since Futey played outside hitter early in the season, her actual full season average is lower).
  • Akron libero Lauren Latka is so popular ... oh never mind, I have used that joke four times already.
  • Buffalo needed a loss by Northern Illinois tonight to make the MAC Tournament. NIU lost to Western Michigan 3–2, giving Buffalo and NIU equal 10–8 records, and Buffalo advanced by tie-breakers.
  • This season is just the 4th time that UB has finished at 0.500 or higher since joining the MAC, two of them coming under Scott Smith, and the other two coming under his predecessor Blair Brown Lipsitz. All four of the 0.500 or better seasons have come in the last six years.
Edited by dj_paige
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