Saturday, September 23, 2023
Rider Broncs (2-9, 1-2 MAAC) vs. Saint Peter's Peacocks (0-13, 0-3 MAAC)
Location: Lawrenceville, NJ / Alumni Gym
Time: 1 p.m.
Live Video –ESPN+
Live Stats – GoBroncs.com
 
What You Need To Know
- Saturday's match will be available on ESPN+.
- The Broncs were selected sixth by the league's coaches in the MAAC Preseason Poll, but were one of six teams to receive a first-place vote. Rider finished seventh in the regular season in 2022 before reaching the MAAC Tournament semifinals with wins over Manhattan and second-seeded Marist. The Broncs ultimately fell in the semifinals to eventual MAAC Champions Quinnipiac.
- Rider returns three starters from a season ago in senior outside hitters Tori Schrader (Grantville, PA/Lower Dauphin) and Jenna Amaro (Fort Lauderdale, FL/Archbishop McCarthy), and MAAC All-Rookie honoree, middle hitter Carley McAleavey (Smithtown, NY/Smithtown West).
- Schrader led all active Broncs entering the season with 499 career kills, and her 2.63 kills per set would rank ninth in program history. Amaro has compiled 294 kills, 43 aces, and 366 digs in her first three seasons. McAleavey hit .301 as a freshman, totaling 181 kills and 55 blocks in 92 sets.
- The Broncs will have to fill the void left by the graduation of Morgan Romano (Oviedo, FL/Hagerty), who was named to First-Team All-MAAC honors by the league last season. Romano became the first player in program history to earn four All-MAAC honors during her career.
- Key reserves returning for the Broncs include Kiannisha Santiago (San Juan, PR/Hudson Catholic (NJ)), who finished 2022 with 128 kills in just 59 sets, and defensive specialists Keegan O'Connor (Weatherford, TX/Weatherford) and Molly Strah (Akron, OH/Archbishop Hoban). The duo recorded 2.65 and 2.13 digs per set last season, respectively.
- O'Connor was the star for the Broncs at the Cavalier Classic, totaling 19 digs and five aces across a pair of matches to earn All-Tournament Team honors. O'Connor leads Rider this season, averaging 3.31 digs per set.
- Santiago leads the Broncs this season with 74 kills. She is also second on the squad with 20 blocks.
- Paige Giehtbrock (Clarkston, MI/Clarkston) earned All-Tournament Team honors at the Delaware Invitational, posting 23 kills, six digs, and a pair of aces across the two matches.
- Incoming freshman Molly Rohde (Hortonville, WI/Hortonville) has a team-high 26 blocks and is third on the team with 56 kills, and transfer-junior Ryley Frye (New Hope, MN/Robbinsdale Armstrong[UTEP]) has a team-high 218 assists to go along with 13 aces.
- Rider has won 25 of the last 26 meetings against the Peacocks, and leads the all-time series 37-21. Schrader had a career-high 19 kills at Saint Peter's last season.
- Saint Peter's is led offensively by Mackenzie Tucker, who is averaging 2.31 kills per set. Tucker also leads the Peacocks with 66 digs.