New Jersey City University Athletics

Box Score BOX SCORE
GAME PROGRAM/NOTES

JERSEY CITY, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | New Jersey City University hit .412 as a team, led by two-time Skyline Conference Rookie of the Week BESMIR ARSLANI (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Valley), senior outside hitter KENNY LISK (Old Bridge, NJ/Old Bridge) and junior setter/opposite JUSTIN BEAUMONT (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) who each hit better than .500 and NJCU evened its record at .500 on the season, as the Gothic Knights defeated Purchase College in a Skyline Conference match for the second time in three days, 3-0 (25-12, 25-15, 25-16) on Tuesday night at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center on “Coach Charlie Brown Court.”
 
NJCU needed just 65 minutes to improve to 5-5 overall and 4-3 in the Skyline for its third straight win while the Panthers (1-6, 0-6 Skyline) lose their fourth in a row. NJCU leads the all-time series, 7-0 (six sweeps) after previously defeating the Panthers, 3-0 (25-9, 25-10, 25-17) on February 12 in Purchase, NY. 

NJCU hit .400 or higher in all three sets and never trailed in the first two games while owning a 43-18 differential in kills. NJCU had just 10 errors in 80 attacks. Purchase hit .078 overall (18-13-64). NJCU has hit over .400 as a team four times this season, including all three matches during the current winning streak.
  
Arslani reached double figures in kills for the ninth time in 10 matches to open his collegiate career and posted a match-high for kills for the eighth time as the rookie sensation slammed 16 kills for the second consecutive outing. He hit .667 with just two errors in 21 attempts to match the second highest kill total of his career and equal the high-water mark for a three-set contest. He added five digs and two blocks.
 
Lisk reached double figures in kills for the first time this season and 29^th time in his career and he moved into ninth place in school history by chalking up 10 winners and a .529 percentage with just one error on 17 swings. He added two assisted blocks in the win.
 
Beaumont had another all-around stellar effort with 16 assists, eight kills and no attack errors (14 attempts) for a .571 accuracy rate, and seven digs with two aces. He posted a .552 setting percentage.
 
Also for NJCU, sophomore middle blocker NATHAN JOUBERT (Union City, NJ/Union City) hit .333 with four kills (4-1-9) and two blocks. Freshman setter ANDRES MARTINEZ (Union City, NJ/Union City) had 10 assists while playing just the third set. Junior setter GARY PRESTON, JR. (North East MD/Rising Sun (MD)) finished with nine assists in two games.
  Freshman middle hitter Blake Borysewicz (Brooklyn, NY/HS of Telecommunications Arts and Technology) and senior outside hitter Kevon Kareem Bruce (Hayes, Jamaica/Joppatowne) each had an identical attack line of six kills and three errors on 17 attempts for a .176 percentage. Junior setter Alex Billen-Calhoun (Niskayuna, NY/Niskayuna) tallied 14 assists.
 
NJCU never trailed nor were tied in the opening set and hit .400 with 12 winners (12-4-20) while the Panthers were limited to a -.077 rate (3-4-13). NJCU opened a 7-2 lead which swelled to 19-7 en route to the 13-point decision. Joubert had four kills in five attempts and hit .800 in the set while Arslani was a perfect 3-for-3.
 
In the second set there were four early ties but the Knights never trailed and collected 15 kills in 30 swings (three errors) for a .400 percentage. Purchase countered with seven kills and hit .042 (7-6-24). Arslani collected six kills and hit .625 in the period (6-1-8) while Beaumont hit .750 with five assists and three winners (3-0-4). Borysewicz hit .500 for Purchase in the game (3-0-6).
 
Tied at 7-7, NJCU used kills by Lisk and Beaumont to produce a 13-9 lead. Purchase cut the deficit to two (13-11) before the Knights built a 23-13 advantage by uncorking a 10-2 run and won the game by 10, 25-15.
 
In the final set, NJCU's attack rate was a sizzling .433 with 16 kills (16-3-30), behind Arslani who floored seven kills in 10 swings (.600, 7-1-10). Lisk hit .714 in the game with five kills (5-0-7) and Beaumont added a .500 percentage (3-0-6).
 
Purchase grabbed its first lead of the night at 4-3 before NJCU gained and maintained a modest lead throughout the early moments of the period. Ahead 14-12, the hosts scored five of the next six points and generated an 8-2 run to claim a 22-14 advantage. Arslani had three consecutive winners during the spurt and four kills in a stretch of five points. A combined block by Martinez and rookie middle blocker IVAN PRENSA (Jersey City, NJ/Dickinson) on match point capped the win after a kill by Prensa had made it 24-16. Prensa finished with three blocks for NJCU. The Knights were without starting middle blocker PATRYK RUSZNICA (Cieszyn, Poland/Bayonne).
 
NJCU will face its biggest challenge of the season on Saturday, February 18 in Hoboken, NJ in a tri-match against a pair of national powerhouses. At 2 p.m. the Knights will face No. 4 ranked Juniata College in the first-ever meeting between the schools before challenging #8 Stevens Institute of Technology in an away match at4 p.m. at Canavan Arena to close the day.