LOUDONVILLE, NY – Siena Volleyball will open up Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) play with back-to-back home dates hosting Saint Peter's on Friday at 6 p.m. followed by a Saturday matinee versus Rider at 2 p.m. at the UHY Center. 

Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+ with Joe Puccio and James Hosley on the call and Hailey Deptula as the sideline reporter. 

All live stats can be followed here and fans may follow the action with live video highlights, photos and updates on "X" @SienaVB.

The Saints (4-8) have earned a victory in each of the first four weekends to begin the season, sweeping Central Connecticut State, topping Lafayette, and also notching sweeps against Stonehill and Le Moyne. 

"We're getting better every single match that we're playing so that's really important," said first-year Siena head volleyball coach Tyler Kanelos.

"We've got a young group and a lot of new faces. Obviously, it takes time to gel. We've had the non-conference portion and we just want to be playing our best volleyball heading into the MAAC portion of our schedule. We've been really competitive in pretty much every single match we've played so I think with a young group, a new group that's all you can ask for and we've been able to come out with some victories." 

The Saints have several conference Top-10 statistical leaders.

Junior right side Doga Diraz has led the way, averaging the second most kills per set at 3.60, the ninth best hitting percentage at .279 and is second in average points per set at 4.18. 

Directly behind her is sophomore outside hitter Gabrielle Wire in kills per set with 3.16. 

Wire has hit the ground running as a transfer from UW-Milwaukee and also ranks ninth in points per set at 3.27. 

As for the Peacocks (5-6), it is coming off the heels of a 3-0 victory over LIU in Brooklyn, NY, this past Tuesday.

Saint Peter's also has a five-set win versus Holy Cross and four-set victories against NJIT, Mercyhurst and Morgan State. 

Freshman setter Andrea Rodriguez leads the MAAC in service aces with 27, at least four more aces than all others.

Junior outside hitter Sibana Gonzalez Acevado ranks third overall in total kills with 152, eighth in kills per set (2.82) and is eighth in points per set (3.32). 

The block will be something to keep in mind as Saint Peter's sports the top two blockers in the conference with Karolina Rodriguez Mendez (56 total blocks) and Elena Bilhartz (40 total blocks) ranking number one and two in the category.  

Siena leads the all-time series versus Saint Peter's 44-14 including a current streak of 11 consecutive victories dating back to September of 2018. 

On Saturday, the Saints will take on the Broncs (2-8), who have lost three straight heading into their Friday match up at Marist.

Rider has a four-set win in its opener against Le Moyne and also defeated New Hampshire in five sets back on Sept. 13. 

Senior outside hitter Kiannisha Santiago leads Rider with 97 kills (ranks eighth in the MAAC) and 2.94 kills per set (sixth highest mark).

From an efficiency standpoint, graduate student Carley McAleavey has proven to be one of the conference's best, ranking second in hitting percentage at .350 with 58 kills against just 13 errors on 123 total attacks.

Siena leads the all-time series against Rider 29-20, however, the Broncs are currently on a five-match winning streak against the Saints dating back to October of 2022.