Buffalo State and Fredonia will open their respective women's volleyball SUNYAC seasons on Friday at 7 p.m. in Oswego, also kicking off the inaugural "Battle by the Lake", a season long "all-sports" competition between the two schools.
 
Buffalo State is the defending SUNYAC Champion after finishing second in last year's regular season with an 8-1 record in league play.  The Bengals are currently 9-5 overall and have been led offensively by 2013 honorable mention All-American Sam Parente (E. Patchogue/Bellport) who has 139 kills in 50 sets played.  Buffalo State is also the top blocking team in the SUNYAC, averaging 2.18 blocks-per-set.  Senior Jessica Crooks (Niagara Falls/Niagara-Wheatfield) leads the team with 40 blocks, followed by Kayla Pyc (Grand Island/Grand Island) and Courtney White (Ft. Lauderdale, FL/St. Thomas Aquinas) who have 35 and 34 respectively.  Fredonia currently 8-6 overall.
 
For the "Battle by the Lake", each sport in which the two schools compete is worth two points annually. In sports which meet once per regular season, each game is worth two points and ties are worth one point.  In sports that play twice during the regular season (softball, men's hockey and men's and women's basketball), each game will be worth one point, and ties will be worth a ½ point.  In the sports of cross country, swimming & diving, indoor track & field and outdoor track & field, the team that finishes higher at the SUNYAC Championship meet will earn two points for its school.  The school with the most points at the end of the season will earn the Lake Erie Cup and keep the cup on its campus for the following year.  (non-conference and postseason matchups will not count toward the Lake Erie Cup competition).
 
For a complete schedule of the "Battle by the Lake" matchups, CLICK HERE