New Jersey City University Athletics

 

JERSEY CITY, NJ…The New Jersey City University men’s volleyball team, ranked No. 14 in Division III, landed a season-high 19 aces, and collectively hit .415 on attack (37-10-65), as the Gothic Knights needed only 55 minutes to dispose of Yeshiva University in a 3-0 sweep (30-11, 30-9, 30-12), during a North East Collegiate Volleyball Association Metro Division match at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center on Sunday afternoon. NJCU now leads the all-time series, 18-0, with all wins via sweeps.

               

With the victory, NJCU (16-5, 8-4 NECVA Metro) wins for the 16^th time in 18 matches and improves to 11-2 at home this season. Yeshiva, which snapped a 26-match losing streak on March 16, falls to 1-17 and 0-13 NECVA Metro. The match was a make-up of a March 2 postponement following a winter storm.

               

MAURICE WASHINGTON" src="/images/mvball/2006/3/19/02-02-06%20Maurice%20Washington%2023.jpg" width=150 align=right border=0>NJCU junior setter MAURICE WASHINGTON (Orlando, FL/Edgewater (FL), quarterbacked the high-percentage offense with 33 assists, and added three aces, giving him 140 in his career. Washington moved into second place in school history in aces, passing Abdel Escalante (2001-03), and continues to close in on the all-time program record of 146 by Hall-of-Famer Satsay Thongvichith (1995-98). He also moved into ninth place in school history in games played (300).

 

Freshman outside hitter KEVIN RODGERS (Clifton, NJ/Clifton) was the only player in double figures in kills, as he hit .667 with 11 winners and only one error (11-1-15), while serving three aces.

Junior middle DAMON LaSALLE (Clifton, NJ/Clifton) moved into ninth place in school history in total points with 916.0 as he posted six blocks and hit .625 on attack with six kills and only one error in eight swings. He added three aces.

 

Senior outside hitter CARLOS DUCOS (Passaic, NJ/Passaic) had five kills (5-19), four blocks, three aces and hit .444 in two games. Junior opposite ROBERT GRIFFITHS (Edison, NJ/John P. Stevens) contributed four kills (4-2-7, .286) and three blocks, and moved into 10^th place in NJCU history in games played (298). Freshman middle blocker DAVIE INGRAM (Newark, NJ/Science) had five kills, landed three aces, and hit .444 (5-1-9).

 

NJCU cruised to victory in all three games. In game one, NJCU led 5-3, before a 14-2 run, highlighted by LaSalle’s precise jump serving, made it 19-5. In the final frame, NJCU led 7-4, before the Knights rolled off seven straight points while freshman outside hitter THIAGO SIQUEIRA (Newark, NJ/Science) served.

 

NJCU will return to action on Monday, March 20 at 7 p.m. in an NECVA Metro match against #7 ranked Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ. NJCU must win the match to receive an automatic bid to the NECVA Tournament; otherwise the Knights will learn on March 27 if it will receive one of four at-large bids to the 16-team conference tournament.