New Jersey City University Athletics

| Box Score 2 BOX SCORE: NJCU vs. CCNY
BOX SCORE: Brooklyn vs. Wentworth
GAME PROGRAM/NOTES


JERSEY CITY, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | Sophomore outside hitter BESMIR ARSLANI (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Valley) buried 16 kills and New Jersey City University won back-to-back matches at its season-opening quad on January 26, as the Gothic Knights swept City College of New York, 3-0 (25-15, 25-18, 27-25) at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center on “Coach Charlie Brown Court.”
 
NJCU (2-0) held its first two opponents to a negative hitting percentage. After Brooklyn hit -.058 in match one on Saturday, CCNY was held to -.024 (24-26-85) as the Knights stuffed a combined 9.0 blocks. NJCU posted a .238 attack percentage with 37 winners (37-17-84). The Knights lead the all-time series, 23-5.
 
Arslani, the 2012 Skyline Conference Rookie of the Year and a First-Team All-Conference selection, reached double figures in kills for the 26^th time in 33 career matches—78.8 percent of his outings—and posted a match-high in kills for the 20^th time as he hit .273 with 16 winners (16-7-33) and stuffed five  blocks, including a pair of solo rejections.
 
Senior outside hitter JUSTIN BEAUMONT (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne), NJCU's other First-Team All-Skyline standout, hit .471 with nine kills and only one error (17 attempts), adding six digs and senior setter GARY PRESTON, JR. (North East MD/Rising Sun (MD)) delivered 30 assists with a .435 setting percentage.
 
Freshman libero NICK POH (Richmond, VA)/Varina (VA)) defended a match-high eight digs. NJCU utilized 13 of its 16 players in the match, including freshman RAYMEL CASTRO (Newark, NJ/Barringer), who landed three of the team's five aces.
 
CCNY junior outside hitter Jose Castillo (Bronx, NY) led the Beavers with eight kills (8-5-20, .150). Sophomore opposite Bryan Hu (Brooklyn, NY) finished with 17 assists.

“CCNY was a very scrappy team who competed well,” said first-year head coach Ray Vance. “They make you beat them by keeping the ball in play and being efficient. They will beat teams who don't give them their due respect. They will not be outhustled.” 
  
The Knights had 13 kills in the first set, hitting .450 in the period (13-4-20). Tied at 10-10, NJCU took control with a 7-1 run and built a 21-13 advantage before winning by 10 points, 25-15. Arslani had five kills (5-2-8, .375) in the game. Beaumont and freshman opposite JONATHAN FONT (San Sebastian, Puerto Rico/Patria Latorre Ramirez) each were 3-for-3 on attack.
 
The clubs were tied eight times in each of the first two sets but the Knights attack again carried them as the hosts hit .259 with 11 kills (11-4-27), guided by Arslani and Beaumont who posted identical lines of four kills, one error and eight attempts (.375). Leading 11-10, NJCU pushed the advantage to 17-12. The Beavers drew within three, 17-14 and 22-18, before the Knights closed out the period by seven, 25-18.
 
Set three was the most competitive as the Knights needed extra points to prevail. Arslani slammed seven kills (7-4-17) in the set and NJCU tallied 13 as a club. The schools were tied six times in the set and CCNY threatened to extend the match to four games, leading 23-21. A CCNY service error made it a one point game and after Beaumont reached out an arm for a dig save, Arslani slammed a kill to tie it at 23-23. A Castillo kill after CCNY managed to digs a pair of Arslani attacks gave the Beavers set point. Font slammed a kill off the block to tie it before CCNY once again landed a kill and held set point. But Beaumont evened it with a cross court cut shot winner from way outside the antenna on the left side. CCNY struck the next ball into the next and freshman middle blocker DAQUE WILCOX (Camden, NJU/Camden County Tech) unleashed an ace to clinch the match, 27-25.
 
In the second mid-day match of the two-court quad, Wentworth Institute of Technology (2-1) swept Brooklyn College (0-2), 3-0 (25-19, 25-13, 25-12). Local product and freshman outside hitter Elijah Egalite (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) hit .474 with a match-high 10 kills, sophomore outside hitter Rami Akouri (Fall River, MA) added a .500 percentage with nine kills and no errors (9-0-18) and junior middle blocker Brian Mann (East Freetown, MA) hit .700 with eight kills (8-1-10) and four blocks. Senior setter Tyler Moriarty (Wilbraham, MA) had 32 assists to pace an offense that posted a .387 percentage (38-9-75).
 
Sophomore outside hitter David Dimitruk (Philadelphia, PA) led Brooklyn with nine kills and hit .389 (9-2-18). Junior setter Timothy Hui (St. Paul, MN) gave out 23 assists.