DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (July 19, 2024) - For the ninth year, Mercy University Athletics will recap the year by counting down the Top-10 most memorable moments of the 2023-24 season, with all 10 sports represented.
Mercy University Athletics will release a Top-10 moment, as chosen by the athletics staff, with a recap every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next four weeks, culminating with the top moment from the 2023-24 athletic year being unveiled on Monday, July 22nd.
Co-No. 1– Volleyball Wins First NCAA Tournament Match Since 2001 in First NCAA Appearance Since 2005
Coming in as our Co-No. 1 moment from the 2023-24 athletic year is volleyball who won their first NCAA Tournament match since 2001 in their first NCAA appearance since 2005.
Head Coach Ana Todorovic and the Mavericks were picked in a tie for second in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 13-7 last season, qualifying for the ECC Championship for the third straight season. The Mavericks posted their first winning record since 2005 and just missed out on qualifying for the NCAA Tournament in 2022.
Mercy opened their 2023 season on August 31st at home against Pace. Senior Larissa Schneid had a match-high nine kills as Mercy cruised to a 3-0 win over the Setters. Senior Yarianne Gonzalez had a match-high 31 assists with seven digs and graduate student Julia Pomerleau had seven kills. The Mavericks won their season opener for the second straight year.
The Mavericks made it two wins in a row to start the season when they earned a convincing, 3-0 (25-15, 25-11, 25-15) win at Goldey-Beacom on September 5th. Schneid led the way with a match-high 10 kills and Gonzalez had a match-high 22 assists. Freshman Mia Illes-Hair added six kills and junior Aitza Cruz had a match-high-tying eight digs. The Mavericks started 2-0 for the second straight year.
Todorovic and the Mavericks ended the week hosting Caldwell on September 8th. Pomerleau had a match-high 10 kills and seven blocks as Mercy earned their third straight three-set win to open the season. Mercy started 3-0 for the second straight season.
Mercy faced their first test of the season against NE10 foe Southern Connecticut State on September 12th and passed with flying colors as they earned a 3-1 victory to improve to 4-0 on the year. Schneid had a match-high 17 kills with 11 digs and Gonzalez had 42 assists, eight digs and four kills as Mercy defeated the Owls for the second straight year.
On September 15th, the Mavericks improved to 5-0 for the first time since 2001 when they earned a 3-0 win at Dominican. Schneid led the way with a match-high 11 kills and nine digs and junior Anyelainy Vizcaino had 10 kills. Following the win over Dominican, Gonzalez was named to the ECC Honor Roll.
The Mavericks suffered their first loss of the season on September 20th when they dropped a hard-fought 3-0 decision to Adelphi, who would go on to qualify for the NCAA Tournament and host the East Regional. Senior Ayzaline Garay and Schneid both had double-doubles in the loss and Gonzalez had a match-high 37 assists.
Mercy bounced back on September 24th, earning a 3-1 win over Roberts Wesleyan in their ECC pener. The Mavericks dropped the first set of the match before winning the next three to win their ECC opener for the third straight season. Mercy moved to 6-1 for the second straight year. Schneid had a match-high 21 kills with 14 digs and Gonzalez had a match-high 47 assists with 12 digs. Cruz added 17 digs and Vizcaino contributed 15 kills. After the win over Roberts Wesleyan, Gonzalez and Schneid were tabbed to the ECC Honor Roll.
Todorovic and the Mavericks were back in action on September 27th when they played at Molloy. Gonzalez and Schneid recorded double-doubles as the Mavericks earned a 3-1 win over the Lions, moving to 7-1 overall and 2-0 in ECC play for the second straight year. Schneid had a match-high 20 kills with 11 digs and Gonzalez had a match-high 39 assists with 10 digs. Mercy suffered their first ECC loss of the season on September 30th when they dropped a four-set match at Queens. Schneid had a match-high 16 kills and 18 digs and Vizcaino had 16 kills. Following the week, Gonzalez and Schneid were tabbed to the ECC Honor Roll.
The Mavericks dropped their second match in a row when they hosted first-place Daemen on October 7th. Schneid had 10 kills as the Mavericks dropped a three-set match to the Wildcats in Dobbs Ferry. Mercy got back in the win column the next day when they earned a four-set win over D'Youville. Pomerleau had 17 kills and Schneid and Gonzalez added double-doubles as the Mavericks improved to 8-3 overall and 3-2 in ECC play on the year. After the week was over, Schneid was named to the ECC Honor Roll.
Mercy won their second match in a row on October 14th when they earned a 3-1 win over St. Thomas Aquinas. Pomerleau had a team-high 16 kills and Schneid had 11 kills and a team-high 14 digs. Senior Tanializ Rivera added 10 kills and Cruz had 10 digs. Gonzalez had a match-high 47 assists and recorded her 2,000th career assist as a Maverick. She became the sixth setter in school history to reach the mark. Mercy sat at 9-3 on the year, which was their best 12-match start since 2005. After the win over STAC, Gonzalez was named ECC Setter of the Week and Pomerleau and Schneid were tabbed to the Honor Roll.
The Mavericks' two-match winning streak came to an end on October 17th when they dropped a three-set match at RV Bentley. Schneid had a team-high six kills and a match-high 12 digs in the loss. Freshman Alanis Calderon had a match-high 21 assists.
Todorovic and the Mavericks headed to first-place Daemen on October 21st. Mercy dropped a 3-1 decision to the Wildcats to fall to 9-5 overall and 4-3 in ECC play. Schneid finished the match with a team-high 12 kills to go along with 11 digs. Cruz added a team-high 14 digs and Gonzalez had a match-high 37 assists. Mercy concluded their Western New York trip with a five-set loss to D'Youville on October 22nd. Schneid had a match-high 21 kills and a team-high 21 digs as Mercy dropped their third match in a row. After the week was over, Schneid and Gonzalez were tabbed to the ECC Honor Roll.
Mercy hosted Molloy on October 25th and dropped a 3-0 decision to the Lions for their fourth straight loss. Schneid had a team-high 14 kills and a match-high 10 digs and Gonzalez added a team-high 31 assists. Mercy sat at 9-7 overall and 4-5 in ECC play following the loss.
The Mavericks regrouped and got back to their winning ways with a 3-0 win over Queens on October 29th. Mercy was led by Schneid who had a match-high 19 kills, by Gonzalez who had a match-high 37 assists and by sophomore Samantha Cooney who had a team-high 10 digs. Following the win over Queens, Schneid and Gonzalez were again named to the ECC Honor Roll.
Todorovic and the Mavericks made it two wins in a row when they earned a 3-0 win at Saint Rose on October 31st. Vizcaino led the way with a match-high 12 kills and Gonzalez added a match-high 28 assists as Mercy improved to 11-7 on the year. The Mavericks defeated Saint Rose for the first time since 2004 after having dropped the previous 14 meetings.
In the first NCAA Regional Rankings released on November 1st, the Mavericks were one of 10 teams under consideration for an NCAA Tournament berth. Mercy was back in action on November 5th when they hosted Roberts Wesleyan. Calderon had a career-high 38 assists and nine digs, Schneid had a match-high 16 kills and Cruz had a match-high 20 digs as Mercy earned a four-set win over the Redhawks. With the win, the Mavericks secured their fourth straight ECC Championship berth. After the win over Roberts Wesleyan, Schneid was named to the ECC Honor Roll.
Mercy was at No. 8 in the second NCAA East Regional Rankings released on November 8th. The Mavericks hosted perennial East Region power American International on November 9th. Pomerleau had a match-high 13 kills, Gonzalez had a double-double and Cruz had a match-high 12 digs as the Mavericks earned a 3-0 win over the Yellow Jackets. Mercy won their fourth match in a row and defeated the two-time defending NE10 Regular Season Champion Yellow Jackets for the first time since 2019. AIC was ranked second in the East Region in the latest NCAA Regional Rankings.
The Mavericks concluded the regular season with Senior Day against St. Thomas Aquinas on November 11th. In a ceremony prior to the game, Mercy recognized Gonzalez, Schneid, Rivera and Garay for their contributions to the program. The Mavericks cruised to an impressive 3-0 (25-12, 25-14, 25-14) win over the Spartans with Gonzalez recording a match-high 28 assists and Schneid adding a match-high 11 kills. After the win over STAC, Pomerleau was named ECC Player of the Week, Cruz was tabbed Defensive Player of the Week, Gonzalez was named Setter of the Week, Illes-Hair was tabbed Rookie of the Week and Schneid was named to the Honor Roll. Mercy ended the regular season 14-7 overall and 7-5 in ECC play. The Mavericks ended the regular season with five straight wins and had their most wins in a season since 2019. Mercy secured the No. 3 seed in the following week's ECC Championship and would face No. 2 seed Molloy in a Semifinal at Daemen on November 17th.
In the final posted NCAA East Regional Rankings, the Mavericks sat at No. 6 heading into the ECC Championship. Prior to the start of the ECC Championship, Schneid was named ECC Player of the Year and Gonzalez was tabbed Setter of the Year. Schneid was named First Team All-ECC and Gonzalez and Pomerleau were tabbed Second Team All-ECC. Schneid was named Player of the Year for the first time and was named First Team All-ECC for the third straight year. Gonzalez received Setter of the Year and Second Team All-ECC for the second straight year and Pomerleau was named Second Team All-ECC for the second consecutive year.
Mercy dropped the first set to Molloy in the ECC Championship Semifinal before taking set two to tie the match at 1-1. The Lions won the next two sets to take the match, 3-1, advancing to the Final. Schneid had a double-double, Gonzalez had a team-high 40 assists and Cooney had a team-high 13 digs in the loss. The Mavericks fell in the Semifinals for the fourth straight year and sat at 14-8 on the year. Mercy would have to wait to see if their name would be called on the NCAA Tournament Selection Show.
Despite some anxious moments, the Mavericks heard their names called on November 20th, earning the No. 7 seed in the East Region. Mercy would face No. 2 seed New Haven at Adelphi on November 30th in a First Round matchup. The Mavericks were making their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 18 years.
Prior to the start of the NCAA Tournament, Schneid was named D2CCA Second Team All-Region for the first time after leading the team in kills, kills per set and digs. The Mavericks were facing a Chargers team that was one of the hottest teams in the region, having won the NE10 Championship the week before. Mercy held a 22-15 lead in set one before New Haven scored three of the next four points to make it 23-18, but back-to-back kills from Schneid and Vizcaino gave Mercy the first set, 25-18. New Haven won set two, 25-20, to tie the match at 1-1. The Mavericks jumped out to a 7-2 lead in set three before the Chargers later cut Mercy's lead to three, 23-20. Two straight kills from Schneid gave Mercy the 25-20 set three win. New Haven held an 11-8 lead in set four before Mercy scored five straight points to take a 13-11 lead after a Pomerleau kill. The Chargers later cut Mercy's lead to one, 21-20, but Mercy closed the set with four straight points to win the set 25-20 and the match in four sets. The Mavericks pulled the upset to earn their first NCAA Tournament win since 2001 and defeated the Chargers for the first time since 2004. Mercy advanced to the Second Round where they would face No. 3 seed Bentley. With the win, the Mavericks now had their most wins in a season since 2005. Pomerleau led the Mavericks with a career-high 17 kills and Schneid and Gonzalez added double-doubles.
The next day the Mavericks faced Bentley in a rematch from earlier in the season. The match was tied at 1-1 before the Falcons won the final two sets to win the match, 3-1. Bentley went on to win the East Region Championship and advanced to the Elite Eight. Schneid had 11 kills and Gonzalez had a double-double in the final match of their careers. Gonzalez was named to the All-Tournament Team after recording a double-double in both matches, finishing the tournament with 82 assists, 25 digs and five kills. The senior ended her career with 2,401 assists and 659 digs. Mercy ended the season 15-9, seeing their season end in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005. The Mavericks won their first NCAA Tournament match since 2001 and finished the season with their most wins since 2005.
On December 4th, Schneid was named AVCA All-East Region Honorable Mention after leading the team with 318 kills, 3.74 kills per set and 252 digs. She ranked second in the ECC in kills per set and fifth in kills. Schneid ended her Mercy career with 841 kills, 727 digs, 90 aces and 75 blocks.
Mercy also excelled in the classroom with Schneid, Pomerleau, Vizcaino and Cooney being named to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team. Schneid was also named CSC Third Team Academic All-American, becoming the second volleyball student-athlete to receive the honor in program history. Schneid was also named the ECC Volleyball Scholar-Athlete of the Year and was a speaker at the School of Health and Natural Sciences Commencement Ceremony. The team posted a 3.65 GPA in the fall and a department-best 3.84 GPA in the spring.
The 2023 season proved to be a historic one for the Mercy University volleyball team and the Mavericks will look to build upon that success in 2024.
Schedule for the Top-10 Moments of the 2023-24 Season
Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next four weeks, the Mercy University Athletic Department will release the Top-10 moments one at a time beginning with the No. 10 moment on Monday, July 1st. The No. 1 moment will be unveiled on Monday, July 22nd.
Co-No. 1 – July 22nd
Co-No. 1 – July 19th
No. 3 – Women's Basketball Qualifies for NCAA Tournament for First Time Since 1985.
No. 4 – Women's Lacrosse Advances to ECC Championship Final for Seventh Straight Season
No. 5 – Men's Soccer Qualifies for ECC Championship for Fifth Time in Six Seasons and Hosts Semifinal
No. 6 – Women's Soccer Qualifies for ECC Championship for 10th Straight Season and Advances to Semifinals
No. 7 – Field Hockey Qualifies for NE10 Championship for First Time
No. 8 – Softball Qualifies for ECC Championship for Fourth Straight Year
No. 9 – Baseball Wins 20 Games for Fourth Time Since 2018
No. 10 – Garrett Kirkland Sets School Record for Career Three-Pointers and Games Played
