JERSEY CITY, N.J. (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | New Jersey City University held a 24-20 lead over No. 3 ranked SUNY New Paltz in game one but couldn't seal the set and the Hawks rallied to sweep the contest, 3-0 (27-25, 25-18, 25-14) in a non-conference men's volleyball contest on March 24 at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center. NP hit .464 in the win with percentages over .600 in the final two games.
 
After reaching the Division III national semifinals last year, New Paltz, ranked No. 3 in the latest AVCA Division III Top 15 poll, demonstrated why it has a shot at the national title this season as the Hawks prevailed for the 12th consecutive match, improving to 18-3. NJCU dropped to 12-9 with the setback.
 
The Hawks planted 41 kills and only nine errors on 69 swings in the win, hitting .684 with 15 kills (15-2-19) in game two and .625 (12-2-16) in the final period.
 
In a match that was expected to have six past AVCA National Players of the Week on the court at one time between the two schools (NJCU, 2; New Paltz 4), the visitors interspersed its lineup in the sweep.
 Freshman setter Mitchell Kennedy (Penfield, NY) was part of a two-setter rotation, hitting .818 on attack with nine kills (no errors) in 11 attempts while dishing 16 assists in 30 attempts for a .533 percentage. Senior setter Misa Garo (Bronx, NY) added 20 assists in 36 tries (.556), five kills at a .444 rate (5-1-9) and two blocks.
 
Meanwhile, freshman outside hitter Anthony Bonilla (New Paltz, NY), considered one of the top rookies in the country, put away nine kills in 19 swings (four errors, .263) and freshman outside Ben Cohen (Wellesley, MA) chipped in eight kills (8-3-14, .357). Freshman middle blocker Ryan Cole (Holbrook, NY) tallied five kills in six tries (.833) and freshman middle Nick Denoncourt (Rochester, NY) rejected four blocks.
 
In a losing effort, NJCU junior outside hitter Daque Wilcox (Camden, NJ/Camden County Tech) was one of three Gothic Knights with six kills, hitting .556 in nine attempts (one error), while flooring a pair of aces.
 
Rookie setter John Leon (Guatemala City, Guatemala/Colegio Interamericano de Guatemala) tallied 13 assists and six kills in a two-setter system with freshman setter Eric Maldonado (Jersey City, NJ/County Prep) adding 10 helpers. Junior opposite Kendall Tribbett (Swedesboro, NJ/Kingsway Regional) also had six kills.
 
In a first set that saw 14 ties and six lead changes, NJCU scored four consecutive points, capitalizing on three NP errors and a Wilcox ace to claim a 16-13 lead and a pair of kills by sophomore middle hitter Sheldon Coure (Redondo Beach, CA/Redondo Union) boosted NJCU in front, 19-15. Coure, NJCU's returning First-Team All-Skyline selection, did not have another kill in the match and was only set seven times.
 
Even without Coure's usual offense, NJCU began pulling away, upping the lead to 22-18 on a Tribbett kill and a Coure ace. A Wilcox winner extended the margin to 24-20 and gave the Knights four set points. But NP would rally impressively. After a service error, the Hawks paired up for back-to-back blocks sandwiched around two other NJCU attack errors and Denoncourt was in on both tandem stuffs to tie it at 24-24 and move ahead by one on another error. Leon teamed with freshman middle Jalen Sorrell (Edison, NJ/John P. Stevens) for a double block and the Knights tied it at 25-25. But a kill by Garo and a final NJCU attack error—its ninth of the game—allowed the Hawks to pull out the 27-25 win.
 
In game two there were seven more ties but none after 10-10 as New Paltz used five consecutive points to build a 15-10 lead behind the strong serving of junior defensive specialist Chris Lilley (Stony Brook, NY). NJCU couldn't get closer than five the remainder of the game as the Hawks attack accuracy was too proficient. Kennedy (4-for-4), Cole (3-for-3) and Garo (2-for-2) combined for nine kills without an error.
 
In the third set, the squads were even at 8-8 before NP uncorked a 7-0 run behind the serving of Garo, to open a 15-8 lead and worked the advantage to 17-9—a 9-1 spurt to seize control before clinching the win, 25-14.
 
OF NOTE:

• Series: New Paltz leads, 21-2, and has won the last 16 meetings.
• New Paltz is ranked No. 3 by the American Volleyball Coaches Association in the week nine (March 24) national poll. The Hawks have been ranked no lower than fifth in any of the 10 polls (including preseason) this season.
• Coure (March 4, 2014) and Sorrell (February 17, 2015) have both earned AVCA National Player of the Week honors for NJCU. Junior middle blocker Christopher Husmann (Massapequa, NY), a two-time AVCA National Player of the Week this season (January 27, March 17) and junior setter Christian Smith ((Massapequa, NY), National Player of the Week on March 10, have both won the award this season. Meanwhile, sophomore middle blocker Steven Woessner (Massapequa Park, NY) won the award on April 15, 2014 and senior setter John Lutjen (Smithtown, NY) claimed the distinction on April 2, 2013. Husman, Smith, Woessner and Lutjen did not play.

 
WHAT'S NEXT?
In the fourth match of a six-match homestand, NJCU will face John Jay College on Thursday, March 26 at 7 p.m. in Jersey City. The Bloodhounds are 10-8 on the season (lost 2). This will be the first meeting between the schools since John Jay reinstated men's volleyball as an intercollegiate offering in 2012. The last meeting came on March 28, 2002 in Jersey City. NJCU won, 3-0 (30-20, 30-24, 30-27). NJCU leads the all-time series, 17-0, including 9-0 in Jersey City. The clubs first met in 1994.