LIU Notches Two Wins over MACC Opponents

10/9/04 -- Senior Ivana Vasiljevic (Brcko, Bosnia & Herzegovina) dished 109 assists and sophomore Dana Demayo (Ra’anana, Israel) combined for 41 kills and 38 digs as Long Island posted two wins at the Valley National Bank Knights Classic in Hackensack, N.J.

LIU (17-5) rallied for a 3-2 victory (19-30, 30-20, 28-30, 30-22, 17-15) over Iona before a 3-0 blanking (30-26, 30-23, 30-27) of Canisius. The tournament featured Northeast Conference schools in interconference matches against the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.

Down two games to one vs. Iona, LIU amassed a .349 hitting percentage with 18 kills and just three errors in game four. The Gaels committed eight errors in that game with just a .167 percentage.

Both teams totaled 12 kills in a tight fifth game with the Blackbirds totaling just one error vs. three for the Gaels (7-12).

Vasiljevic dished 62 assists, eight shy of her own school record, with 16 digs as she was one of five Blackbirds with a double-double. Demayo notched 24 kills and 25 digs with senior Cristina Pintilie (Cluj Napoca, Romania) contributing 20 and 14.

Junior Melanie Fleig (Villingen, Germany) closed with 16 kills and 18 digs, and junior Adela Igniska (Baia Mare, Romania) added 12 and 11.

LIU made quick work of Canisius (7-9) in the final match, owning a 65-39 kills advantage and needing just 75 minutes to win. The Blackbirds posted a 23-7 kills edge in game one and were never headed.

Vasiljevic again continued her stellar play with 47 assists and 22 digs for LIU’s eighth victory in nine outings. Demayo ended with 17 kills and 13 digs, Fleig posted 15 and 22 with Pintilie adding 13 and 14.

The match concluded the Blackbirds’ 20-match road trip. They will play eight of their next 11 at home, beginning Tuesday against Manhattan in a 7:00 pm start.