Newburgh, N.Y. – The Mount Saint Mary College Women's Volleyball team heads to Cazenovia for the first three matches of the season beginning on Friday. The Knights will play the host Wildcats to open the 2019 season and also take on Alfred State and Elmira to begin Head Coach Mike Strano's 17^th season on the sidelines for the Mount.
 
At A Glance: After dropping the first seven matches of the 2018 season, the Knights went 18-8 to finish the year to post an 18-15 overall record and an 8-2 mark against Skyline Conference rivals. The Mount finished in a tie for second place in the final league standings, earning the second seed in the 2018 Skyline Conference Championship.
 
Mount Saint Mary hosted St. Joseph's-L.I. in the semifinal round of the conference championship and after outlasting the Golden Eagles in five sets in the regular season matchup, fell to the third seed in four tightly contested sets in the semifinal round. The Knights earned a berth into the ECAC Championship for the first time since 2011 where they fell to New York University in the First Round.
 
The Knights are tasked will replacing a productive senior class in 2019. Kim Gries led the team with 854 assists and was third on the team with 213 digs in her final campaign. Alex Klesin was second on the team with 253 kills to go along with 171 digs and 35 total blocks and Nicole Spinelli posted 98 kills and 37 total blocks, good for second on the team.
 
Middles: Senior Morgan Burke (Ringwood, N.J.) headlines the returning group after having a standout junior season that saw her earn First Team All-Skyline Conference accolades. Burke led the Knights as a junior in kills with 274 and total blocks with 71. Burke also chipped in with 30 service aces, good for third on the team, and hit .311 on the season.
 
Sophomore Danielle Guarasci (Plainview, N.Y.) is back after seeing time in 39 sets covering 17 matches in 2018 and the position group welcomes freshman Sabrina Romano (Glen Cove, N.Y.) to the fold in 2019. Guarasci registered 24 kills as a rookie to go along with seven digs and four total blocks.

Outside Hitters/Right Sides: Senior Emily Mazzurco (Middletown, N.Y.) had a breakout year for the Knights in 2018, finishing third on the team in sets played with 100 covering 32 matches. She rounded out the year fourth on the team in kills with 100 and in total blocks with 20.
 
Junior Danielle Kralik (Bedford Hills, N.Y.) returns for her third season with the Knights, coming off a sophomore season that saw her finish fourth on the team in service aces with 29 and points with 126. She was third in the team in digs per set, lifting just over two per frame in 2018. Classmate Renee Hydo (Bethpage, N.Y.) is back after seeing time in 30 matches a season ago. She recorded 23 kills, 21 service aces and 96 for the Knights as a sophomore. Shannon Grogan (Levittown, N.Y.) appeared in 13 sets for the Knights as a freshman in 2018, lifting 14 digs and posting two kills and a pair of aces.
 
A trio of newcomers will look to make an immediate impact in 2019, as the Mount adds Grace Riddle (Wantagh, N.Y.), Ashley Hunt (Cheshire, Conn.) and Tara Greeley (Stony Point, N.Y.) to the mix. Greeley comes to the Mount after a three-year varsity career at Albertus Magnus, while Riddle is a former All-State, All-County and First Team All-Long Island performer at Wantagh High School.
 
Defensive Specialist/Libero: The Knights welcome back a trio of returnees to the backline in 2019. Junior Klaire Wall (Point Pleasant, N.J.) served as the team's primary libero in 2018 and rounded out a strong season as the team's leader in digs with 330 and service aces with 45.
 
Jenny Picarillo (Troy, N.Y.) finished the 2018 season, her first with the program, with 68 digs and 10 service aces in 19 matches, while Alyssa Barbara (Islip Terrace, N.Y.) was fifth on the team in service aces with 28 and second on the team in assists with 75.  
 
Setter: The Knights are tasked with replacing Gries at setter and will look to do so with newcomer Fran Cammarata (Carmel, N.Y.). Barbara also saw time at setter as a freshman in 2018, totaling 75 helpers, handing out 1.44 assists per set.
 
Cammarata joins the Knights after a three-year varsity career at Mahopac High School. Cammarata was named All-League and All-Section as a senior and will look to make an immediate impact as she begins her collegiate career.
 
Head Coach: Mike Strano will be at the helm for his 17^th season in 2019. Starno has amassed 254 career wins at the Mount, including 107 against league rivals and has led the Mount to appearances in the Skyline Conference Championship in each of the last 11 seasons.
 
The Schedule: After three matches at Cazenovia this weekend, the Mount will play four challenging contests at the New Paltz Invitational September 6-7. The Knights open the home schedule against FDU-Florham on September 10 in the first of 10 home matches in 2019. The Skyline Conference Championship commences on November 5 and continues on November 7 before the champion is crowned on November 9.