CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (Nov. 11, 2010) – The C.W. Post women's volleyball team will compete in the East Coast Conference 2010 Volleyball Championships this weekend, entering the tournament as the number four seed after regular season play. The Pioneers have posted a 20-11 overall mark this season, including a 6-6 conference record that was good enough for a fourth seed in the championships. 

The Pioneers will face off against #23 Dowling, who earned the #1 seed through a tie-breaker with Bridgeport as both teams finished the ECC schedule at 11-1. Dowling posts a 25-1 overall mark through the entire 2010 season, with its only loss coming at the hands of the Purple Knights of Bridgeport. Dowling also landed in the 23rd spot in the latest Bison/AVCA Division II Coaches Top 25 Poll. 

Seniors Marilena Guadagnini (Huntington Beach, Calif.) and Amanda Ostapow (East Setauket, N.Y.) have been solid during their last year as Pioneers. Guadagnini is currently in eighth in the league, as well as leading the team, with her 2.83 kills per set average. She is also the team leader in service aces per set with 0.45, landing her fourth in the conference. The senior from California has accumulated a 3.39 dig per set average during the year as well, good enough for fifth in the conference. 

Ostapow enters play this weekend leading the team in assists as she currently went over the 1,000 assist mark on the year, standing at 1,054 assists to this point. Her 9.09 assist per set average places her second in the conference. She also finds herself among the league leaders in aces per set with Guadagnini, as Ostapow sits in sixth place with a 0.43 aces per set average. 

C.W. Post has been fortunate to not only have senior leadership on this team, but also to have young talent. Freshman middle blocker Makamae Namahoe (Hilo, Hawaii) earned ECC Rookie of the Week twice during the season, finishing out her first regular season with 288 kills and leading the team with 59 total blocks. Freshman libero Stephanie Coufal has become the anchor in the back line with her defensive skills, leading the team in digs per set as well as finding herself fourth in the conference with a 4.19 dig per set average.

The semi-final match against Dowling will take place this Friday Nov. 12 at 5 p.m. in Recreation Hall at host school NYIT. The number 3 seed NYIT will face off against #2 Bridgeport in a 7:30 p.m. match to determine the other semi-final winner. The winners of these matches will compete for the 2010 ECC Volleyball Championship on Saturday Nov. 13 at 7 p.m., once again on the campus of NYIT.

All 2010 ECC Volleyball Championship information can be found on the ECC website at: http://eccsports.org/Championships/2010_Volleyball/2010vballchampionship