BOX SCORE
NEW YORK, NY (www.NJCUGothicKnights.com)...It is clear after two matches early in the 2010 season that the ability of the New Jersey City University men's volleyball to block its opponents will keep the young Gothic Knights competitive with every opponent while the club gains valuable experience. Sophomore opposite AUSTIN BRYANT (Virginia Beach, VA/Kempsville) had a stellar effort, slamming 14 kills with six blocks while NJCU's two middle blockers, sophomore DANNY KOCHANSKI (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) and rookie CASEY BLAKE (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) combined for 15 kills and 10 blocks as the Gothic Knights gave #10 ranked Baruch College all it could handle, before falling 3-0, (30-27, 30-25, 30-28) in a non-conference match on Tuesday evening at the ARC Arena.
NJCU now had 23.0 total blocks in six sets this season, posting 12.0 more against the Bearcats. NJCU falls to 1-1 overall with the loss. Baruch, ranked 10th in the AVCA Division III Top 15 Coaches Poll, wins its fifth straight to improve to 8-1, while defeating NJCU for the third straight meeting. The Knights lead the all-time series, 15-13.
Bryant posted a match-high 14 kills (14-8-30, .200) with six assisted blocks. Kochanski buried nine kills and hit .375 (9-3-16), adding five blocks, including two solo. Blake continues to be a pleasant early-season surprise. He hit .333 with six kills (6-2-12) and had five assisted blocks.
Junior setter JORGE RODRIGUEZ (Havana, Cuba/Memorial) delivered 24 assists with five digs while senior setter FELIPE SIQUEIRA (Newark, NJ/Science) had 10 assists and two blocks (one solo). Freshman outside hitter MICHAL KUCZA (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) collected six kills and one solo blocks. Sophomore outside hitter KENNY LISK (Old Bridge, NJ/Old Bridge) had a team-high seven digs.
Baruch, which held a 48-41 edge in kills, and hit .257 as a team (48-21-105), was led by junior outside hitter Pablo Oliveira (Uberlandia, Brazil), with 14 kills, a .333 percentage (14-5-27), five digs, two aces and two blocks while junior middle blocker Eryk Kowalski (Zabno, Poland) tallied 11 kills (11-3-19), hit .421, and had five blocks.
Senior setter Radu Wyrwas (Bialystok, Poland) delivered 20 assists and seven kills (7-3-14, .286) while senior setter Ivan Andujar (Carolina, Puerto Rico), a transfer from Elms College where he starred for three years, had 21 assists. Senior outside hitter Ratmir Gorelik (Brooklyn, NY/James Madison) finished with nine digs and seven kills.
NJCU had 13 kills in the opening set and surged out to a 15-4 lead behind five blocks, the final one a solo rejection of Kowalski by Siqueira. The lead expanded to 19-8 on a Bryant kill and Baruch error. But the Bearcats rallied back to win. Gorelik posted two straight kills to tie it at 23-23. The clubs traded ties at 24 and 25. An NJCU service error and Wyrwas kill made it 27-25 Baruch. Kochanski slammed a winner to make it a one-point game before Kowalski collected a kill for 28-26, went ahead 29-26 on an attack error, and won 30-27 on another Wyrwas kill.
Again in set two, NJCU and Baruch battled back and forth. The Bearcats had a 17-11 advantage in kills in the frame but couldn't take a lead larger than four (15-11). NJCU forced three ties, including 20-20. A block by Oliveira and a Wyrwas kill put the hosts up by three, 23-20. Later, a kill by Bryant trimmed the deficit to two, 26-24, but another winner by Oliveira, and two NJCU attack errors gave Baruch a 29-24 lead, before winning 30-25.
The third set proved to be a non-stop offensive battle with each team chalking up 17 kills; NJCU hit .387 (17-5-31) while Baruch's clip was .406 (17-4-32). The sides went back-and-forth, trading leads, but neither team could build an advantage of better than two. Baruch led 23-21 before Bryant uncorked a kill, Kucza smothered a solo block, and Blake finished a winner as NJCU claimed a 24-23 lead. Baruch received two Kowalski kills before Kochanski had a winner to tie the set, 28-28. But NJCU made two final errors as the 10th ranked Bearcats won by two, 30-28, and swept the match.
NJCU will open its 14-match home schedule on Thursday, January 28 at 7 p.m. when it hosts Brooklyn College on “Coach Charlie Brown Court” at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center.
—www.njcugothicknights.com—
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Team Stat Comparison
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NJCU
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BARUCH
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Score
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0
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3
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Attack Percentage
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.180 (41-23-100)
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.257 (48-21-105)
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Kills
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41
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48
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Assists
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39
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44
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Service Aces
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4
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4
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Digs
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30
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29
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Total Blocks
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12.0
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8.0
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Points
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57.0
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60.0
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