Pair of Gators Voted All-Empire 8 Conference
ALBANY, N.Y. – Russell Sage College Women's Volleyball senior opposite Aniyah Kelley (Newcastle, DE/William Penn) and freshman libero Emma Curry (Goodyear, AZ/Estrella Foothills) garnered All-Empire 8 Conference honors. Accolades, determined in a vote conducted by the league's head coaches, were announced by the E8 earlier today.
After helping the Gators qualify for the E8 Championship Tournament for the second-straight year, Kelley was voted to the second-team, while Curry made the third-team.
Kelley led the Gators with 208 kills, 2.63 per-set. The senior, who had double-digit kills in 12 contests, headed into the postseason ranked fifth in the Conference with a .262 hitting percentage.
"I am so proud of Aniyah and her performance this year," said Head Coach Rosilyn Cummings. "She has grown so tremendously in her time here at Sage. She has always been such a gifted physical athlete, but she has grown into an incredibly skilled and smart player. I have enjoyed coaching Niy so much, we will miss having her in the gym."
Curry excelled on the serving line and on defense for RSC as a rookie. She concluded the regular season second in the E8 with 438 digs, 4.61 per-set, and ranked third on the circuit with 65 aces, 0.68 per-set. The libero elevated 20 or more opponent attacks in 10 contests, including 32 on October 15 at Vermont State: Castleton.
"Emma has been such a stellar addition to our program," commented Cummings. "She came in and right away made such an impact culturally and organizationally. She comes from a great program, and it has influenced our gym so positively. I have enjoyed coaching Emma so much and look forward to the direction of our program with her on our squad!"
One member of each team was named that institution's representative on the 2025 E8 Women's Volleyball Tomorrow's Leaders Team. This team honors a student-athlete who has emerged as a leader not only on the field of play, but in the classroom and in the community. In addition, they "compete with honor and integrity" and have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportswomen. Curry represented the Gators (11-13/6-5 E8) on the squad.
Gator Bites with Papa John's: With the October 24 3-2 win at Elmira, RSC clinched a return trip to the Empire 8 Conference Championship Tournament for the second-straight fall…The Gators qualified for the E8 playoffs for the first time in program history in 2024…RSC, the six seed, fell 3-0 at SUNY Brockport, seeded third, in the Quarterfinals…Kelley and Curry garnered All-Conference honors…Kelley was voted to the second-team, while Curry made the third-team…Kelley topped the Gators in kills and kills per-set and went into the postseason sitting fifth in the E8 in attack percentage…Curry, tabbed the Conference's Rookie of the Week for the period ending Sunday, October 26, headed into the playoffs ranked second in the E8 in digs and digs per-set, and third in both aces and aces per-set…Seven players returned this season, including: Kelley and senior outside hitter Ashleigh Gerkman (Valatie, NY/Ichabod Crane)…Head Coach Rosilyn Cummings, who completed her third season at the helm of the Gators, added nine newcomers to this year's squad…Gerkman was selected the E8 Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday, August 31.
