BOX SCORE
JAMAICA, QUEENS, NY (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | New Jersey City University tied 15th ranked SUNY New Paltz after the second set, but the deep Hawk lineup played 14 players and overcame the Gothic Knights in four sets, 3-1 (25-19, 23-25, 25-18, 25-14) on Saturday morning at the 7th annual York College Men's Volleyball Classic at the York College Gymnasium.
The loss dropped NJCU to 10-13. New Paltz (14-10), voted 15th nationally in the American Volleyball Coaches Association Division III Top 15 Poll, wins for the 12th consecutive time in a series it leads, 17-2. The Hawks would eventually win the tournament with a 4-0 record.
In the first of three matches NJCU played on the day, sophomore outside hitter MICHAL KUCZA (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) led NJCU with a match-best 16 kills (16-12-38, .105) and eight digs.
Senior libero CHRIS EDRA (Edison, NJ/J.P. Stevens) chalked up 12 digs and moved into second place in program history with 1,109 in 383 sets, passing Doug Aviles-Bernal who had 1,105 digs in 418 sets in a four-year career (1996, 1999-01), and just 25 shy of tying Marc Bracco's all-time program record of 1,134.
Also for NJCU, junior outside hitter KENNY LISK (Old Bridge, NJ/Old Bridge) had nine kills (9-4-25, .200) and four blocks and freshman opposite RICH BOYLE (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) added 11 digs and eight kills (8-8-28, .000). Senior setter JORGE RODRIGUEZ (Havana, Cuba/Memorial)dished 32 assists and landed three aces. Sophomore middle hitter CORRADO DeVINCENZO (Bayonne, NJ/County Prep) had three blocks.
New Paltz used its size and serving ability to generate 71.0 total points, finishing with 48 kills, 12 aces and 11.0 team blocks. The Hawks used their depth well as 14 players saw action and 12 had at least one kill.
No NP player had double figures in kills, but in an evenly distributed offense, freshman Brian Smith (Massapequa, NY) had eight kills and seven digs in two sets. Freshman outside hitter Victor Tuminelli (Dix Hills, NY) hit .333 with seven kills (7-2-15) and senior outside hitter Keith MacDonald (Monroe Township, NJ) also had seven kills as each player only played two sets.
Also for NP, junior 6-foot-8 middle blocker Kevin Stross (Port Washington, NY) hit .444 with five kills (5-1-9), five aces and four blocks in two sets. Senior 6-foot-7 Jonathan Van Dyke (Hopewell Junction, NY) provided three solo blocks and hit .375 (3-0-8) in two sets. Senior setter Andrew Cassius (Brooklyn, NY) and freshman setter Misa Garo (Bronx, NY) had 20 and 19 assists, respectively, playing two sets each. Junior libero Michael Dauernheim (Bay Shore, NY), who would be named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, finished with 10 digs.
NJCU made 11 attack errors in the first set as there were three ties, but the Knights were not able to draw any closer than 18-16.
NJCU got back in the match in the second set as there were six ties. Kucza and Lisk each had four kills in the set and Boyle added three, hitting .500 (3-0-6). NJCU led for nearly the entire set, including 20-16, before the Hawks ran off four points in a row as NJCU made four errors, and tied it at 20-20. Lisk and Tuminelli had kills for a 21-21 tie before Kucza put NJCU on top with a winner and rookie middle hitter NATHAN JOUBERT (Union City, NJ/Union City) added a kill for a 23-21 edge. An attack error by the Hawks made it 24-21, before NP battled back within one point with a pair of kills before Kucza won the set and tied the match with a kill for a 25-23 win.
In the all-important third set, there were eight ties and six lead changes. But New Paltz, which had 15 kills and hit .364 in the game, broke open a 13-13 tie with a 6-0 run to take a 19-13 lead. Stross served six consecutive points and had one ace; NJCU committed three attack errors. Kills by Lisk and Joubert followed by an ace by Boyle allowed NJCU to cut the deficit in half, 19-16. A kill by Kucza made it 21-18 before New Paltz scored the final four points, winning the set on a Stross kill.
The final set was all New Paltz. Tied 2-2, the Hawks reeled off eight consecutive points and gained a decisive 10-2 lead. The run extended to 12-1 as NP gained a 14-3 lead. Stross served seven straight points during the streak, landing four aces in a span of five points. The Hawks eventually won the set by 11, 25-14.
—www.njcugothicknights.com—
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Team Stat Comparison
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NJCU
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NEW PALTZ
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Score
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1
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3
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Attack Percentage
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.050 (38-32-119)
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.227 (48-19-128)
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Kills
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38
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49
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Assists
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35
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43
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Service Aces
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4
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12
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Digs
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50
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41
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Total Blocks
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6.0
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11.0
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Points
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48.0
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71.0
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