Players of the Week
Player of the Week
Cameron Ulinski (D'Youville)
Jr., OH, Bretten, Germany, Marjory Stoneman Douglas
Ulinski had a standout weekend for the Saints recording 66 kills with a .250 hitting percentage along with 10 service aces. The junior also recorded 43 digs and five total blocks on the defensive side. Ulinski went for a season-high 19 kills in the Saints win against Bridgeport on Saturday while also recording double-doubles against Felician, Bentley, and Bridgeport.
Defensive Player of the Week
Mia Illes-Hair (Mercy)
Sr., MB, Lake Worth, Fla., Palm Beach Central
Illes-Hair had a team-high nine blocks and 1.50 blocks per set to go with 17 kills and 2.83 kills per set on .667 hitting as Mercy went 2-0 on the week. The senior opened the week with a match-high seven blocks to go with seven kills on .500 hitting in the sweep of 2025 NCAA Tournament participant Post on Tuesday. The middle blocker ended the week with two blocks and a match-high-tying 10 kills on .833 hitting in the sweep of Georgian Court on Friday.
Setter of the Week
Adriana Rivera Rodriguez (Mercy)
Sr., S, Humacao, Puerto Rico, American International College
Rivera Rodriguez had a team-high 58 assists and 9.67 assists per set with 17 digs, eight blocks, eight aces and eight kills as Mercy went 2-0. The senior opened the week with a match-high 29 assists to go with nine digs, four blocks (1 solo, 3 assists), four aces, and six kills in the sweep of 2025 NCAA Tournament participant Post on Tuesday. The setter ended the week with a match-high 29 assists to go with eight digs, four blocks, four aces and two kills in the sweep of Georgian Court on Friday.
Rookie of the Week
Audrey Johnson (Daemen)
Fr., OH/DS, Mequon, Wis., Homestead
Johnson led the Wildcats offensively with 47 kills to average 2.94 kills/set while hitting .233 on the weekend as Daemen went 3-1 at the Wildcat Classic hosted by Wilmington. The freshman outside hitter added 27 digs and 8 aces and tallied her third double-double in the five-set victory over Saint Anselm, totaling 16 kills, 14 digs and a career-high six aces against the Hawks.
Weekly Honor Roll
Ashley Ballou (D'Youville)
R-So., S, Eden, N.Y., Eden
Ballou recorded 114 assists this past weekend in four games for the Saints with a season-best 36 assists in back-to-back games against Bentley and Felician. The redshirt Sophomore also recorded 13 kills, six aces, and 26 digs.
Avery Craig (Daemen)
Jr., OH, Tomball, TX, Tomball Memorial HS
Craig led the Wildcats defensively with 52 total digs, averaging 3.25 digs per set while totaling double-digit digs in each match of Daemen's 3-1 weekend at the Wildcat Classic. The junior outside hitter had a career-high 19 digs in the 3-2 win over Saint Anselm. Craig also added 35 kills and five aces on the weekend.
Grace Dilena (Mercy)
Jr., OH, New York, N.Y., Liberty University Online Academy
Dilena had 17 kills and 2.83 kills per set on .552 hitting with 10 digs, four aces, and two blocks as Mercy went 2-0 on the week. The junior opened the week with a match-high-tying nine kills on .643 hitting with two digs, one block, and one ace in Mercy's sweep of 2025 NCAA Tournament participant Post on Tuesday. The outside hitter ended the week with eight kills on .467 hitting with eight digs, one block and three aces in the sweep of Georgian Court on Friday.
Payton Gaylor (Daemen)
Jr., RS, Bowmanville, Ont., St. Stephen Catholic
Gaylor put together a solid weekend for the Wildcats, totaling 45 kills (2.8 per set) while hitting .243 and added seven blocks, 21 digs and one ace as Daemen went 3-1 at the Wildcat Classic hosted by Wilmington. The junior right side hit in the double-digits in three of the four matches, posting a season-high 14 kills with three blocks against Holy Family on Friday.
Kailie Girard (Molloy)
Fr., RS, South Windsor, CT, South Windsor
Girard continued to be one of Molloy's top offensive options, averaging 2.47 kills per week at a .236 clip following a weekend of tough competition at the International Volleyball Hall of Fame East Region Clash at AIC. The freshman reached double digit kills in three matches, including a career-high 17 against the University of Bridgeport.
Olivia Hyman (Queens)
Jr., L, Forest Hills, N.Y., Forest Hills
In a five-match week, junior Olivia Hyman recorded 50 digs, 20 assists, 11 service aces and 11 kills. Hyman was named to the Wildcats Regional Invitational All-Tournament Team Saturday. Hyman recorded her first double-double of the year, notching 13 assists and 13 digs against host Wilmington. Against Saint Anselm, she tallied 16 digs, while against Adelphi, she recorded four service aces.
Franki Kelleher (Molloy)
Jr., MB, Long Beach, NY, Long Beach
Kelleher was Molloy's most efficient hitter at the International Volleyball Hall of Fame East Region Clash at AIC, featuring some of the region's toughest opponents. The middle blocker attacked at a .479 clip, averaging 2.05 kills per set to go with 0.47 blocks per set. Through the week, the junior had a total of just six attack errors through five matches and reached double digit kills twice and three or more blocks twice. She was also named to the event's All-Tournament Team at the conclusion of the weekend.
Boglarka Kiss (St. Thomas Aquinas)
Sr., L, Szeged, Hungary, Szegedi Deak Ferenc Gimnazium
Kiss recorded 10 serve assists and 54 digs over 12 total sets in matches against Monroe, Pace and Goldey-Beacom. The senior libero also posted five service aces in that same span.
Madeline O'Brien (D'Youville)
Sr., OH, East Amherst, N.Y., Clarence
O'Brien eclipsed her 1,000th career kill this weekend in the Saints win over Bridgeport on Saturday. The Senior recorded 44 kills while also recording five service aces, 25 digs and six blocks.
Maddie Schamaun (Daemen)
Sr., S, Rockville, Md., Wheaton
Schamaun totaled 115 assists (7.18/set) along with 44 digs (2.75/set) as she ran the Wildcats to a 3-1 weekend at the Wildcat Classic hosted by Wilmington. The senior setter finished with three double-doubles and recorded her 1,000th career assist in the win over Saint Anselm.
Stasa Stamenkovic (Mercy)
Jr., OH, Bor, Serbia, Barton CC
Stamenkovic had a team-high 19 kills and 3.17 kills per set on .441 hitting with eight digs and three blocks as Mercy went 2-0 on the week. The junior opened the week with a match-high-tying nine kills on .500 hitting to go with three blocks, and four digs in the sweep of 2025 NCAA Tournament participant Post on Tuesday. The outside hitter ended the week with a match-high-tying 10 kills on .389 hitting with four digs in the sweep of Georgian Court on Friday.
Adriana Zarceno (St. Thomas Aquinas)
So., OH, Oviedo Asturias, Spain, Colegio San Ignacio
Zarceno recorded 33 kills, two serve assists, two service aces, 22 digs and a block assist over three matches in 10 total sets against Monroe, Pace and Goldey-Beacom last week. The STAC sophomore outside hitter also held a .198 hitting percentage in that span.
2026 ECC Women’s Volleyball Weekly Award Winners
Player of the Week
Aug. 31 – Grace Dilena (Mercy)
Sep. 7 – Grace Dilena (Mercy) (2x)
Sep. 14 – Cameron Ulinski (D'Youville)
Defensive Player of the Week
Aug. 31 – Kamila Colon (Mercy)
Sep. 7 – Kamila Colon (Mercy) (2x)
Sep. 14 – Mia Illes-Hair (Mercy)
Setter of the Week
Aug. 31 – Adriana Rivera Rodriguez (Mercy)
Sep. 7 – Adriana Rivera Rodriguez (Mercy)
Sep. 14 – Adriana Rivera Rodriguez (Mercy) (3x)
Rookie of the Week
Aug. 31 – Zoe Sercu (Queens)
Sep. 7 – Amelie Gasche (St. Thomas Aquinas)
Sep. 14 – Audrey Johnson (Daemen)
2026 ECC Women's Volleyball Preseason Poll
1. Mercy - 49 points (7 first-place votes)
2. Molloy - 38 points
3. Daemen - 37 points
4. D'Youville - 29 points
5. Roberts Wesleyan - 15 points
T6. St. Thomas Aquinas - 14 points
T6. Queens - 14 points
***
Founded as the New York Collegiate Athletic Conference in 1989 and rechristened the East Coast Conference in July 2006, the ECC was formed to enhance intercollegiate athletic competition among member institutions and to assist them in integrating athletics into their academic program in a fiscally sound way. The ECC is committed to the highest standards of scholarship, sportsmanship, teamwork, and citizenship. Its mission is to promote the total person concept in its student-athletes, which stresses the abilities to excel in academic achievement, athletic competition, and positive character traits. East Coast Conference members include: Daemen University (Amherst, N.Y.); University of the District of Columbia (Washington, D.C.); D'Youville University (Buffalo, N.Y.); Mercy University (Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.); Molloy University (Rockville Centre, N.Y.); Queens College (Flushing, N.Y.); Roberts Wesleyan University (Rochester, N.Y.); College of Staten Island (Staten Island, N.Y.); and St. Thomas Aquinas College (Sparkill, N.Y.). The ECC also is home to 13 associate members in the sports of women’s bowling (3), men’s and women’s indoor track & field (3), men's volleyball (2), field hockey (1), and men’s lacrosse (1).
The ECC sponsors the following championship sports: baseball; men’s and women’s basketball; women's bowling; men’s and women’s cross country; field hockey; men’s and women’s lacrosse; men’s and women’s indoor track and field; men’s and women’s outdoor track and field; men’s and women’s soccer; softball; and men's and women’s volleyball.
The East Coast Conference is a proud member of the NCAA and Division II. Division II is a dynamic and engaging group of colleges, institutions and conferences of varying sizes and educational missions. Division II members encourage and support diversity; value sportsmanship, fairness and equity; and place the highest priority on the overall educational excellence of the student-athlete.