ROSEMONT, PA (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | Junior middle hitter Shege Haxhaj (Lyndhurst, NJ/Lyndhurst) posted an impressive .583 attack percentage in each match as the New Jersey City University's women's volleyball team split its first tri-match of the 2015 season on September 5 at Rosemont College. In the opener, NJCU outhit Bryn Athyn College, .254 to .229, but fell 3-0 (25-18, 25-17, 25-21). NJCU bounced back in match two, knocking off the host Ravens, 3-1 (25-6, 23-25, 25-13, 25-17).
 
NJCU improved to 2-1 after the pair of matches. Bryn Athyn remained unbeaten (3-0) after its win and Rosemont fell to 0-3.
 
Match 1: Bryn Athyn 3, NJCU 0 (25-18, 25-17, 25-21)
Despite having the better team attacking numbers, NJCU was not able to get the better of the result with Bryn Athyn. The Lions had two solid hitting performances as Alexa Kennedy hit .417 with 15 kills (15-5-24) and Taylor Davis provided 10 winners, hitting .412 (10-3-17).
 
In defeat, Haxhaj produced a match-best .583 attack percentage with nine kills (9-2-12) and three blocks, including two solo.
 
For BAC, Abi Anderson finished with 29 assists and uncorked six of the Lions' 12 total service aces. Jenii Bauer tallied 10 digs, four kills and two aces for the victors.
 
For NJCU, freshman outside hitters Georgina Rayo (Jersey City, NJ/McNair Academic) tallied six kills, five digs and two aces and sophomore setter Rachel McIntyre (Drexel Hill, PA/Upper Darby) collected 18 assists and hit .500 with four kills (4-0-8).
 
BAC hit .229 in the match with 35 kills (35-16-83), with 13, 10 and 12, respectively in each period. NJCU hit .346 in the second set with 13 winners (13-4-26), finishing with 29 total winners in the contest.
 
Match 2: NJCU 3, Rosemont 1 (25-6, 23-25, 25-13, 25-17)
NJCU routed the Ravens in the opening set to set the tone before cruising in the third and fourth sets in a match where NJCU held Rosemont to -.101 hitting with 26 attack errors (18-26-79).
 
NJCU hit .268 in the win with 37 winners (37-15-82), led by Haxhaj who posted her 13th career double-digit kills effort with 16. She hit .583 again (16-2-24), adding three aces and two solo blocks.
 
McIntyre delivered 28 assists and helped her own cause by putting away five kills in seven attempts—a .714 rate. She added five aces as NJCU unleashed 13 in the win.
 
Also for the Knights, Rayo had 10 digs, five kills and three aces and sophomore libero Jacqueline Romero (West New York, NJ/Memorial) defended 10 digs.
 
Rosemont setter Sabrina Heggan had 16 assists and three aces. Two Ravens finished with seven kills.
 
NJCU scored the first nine points when it hit .385 in the opening set (6-1-13) while forcing the hosts into eight attack errors in 19 attempts (-.316). NJCU had 10, 10 and 11 kills as a team in the final three games. In the third set, NJCU led 15-11 before putting the period away with an 8-2 run. In the fourth set, NJCU led 16-11 before the Ravens scored four in a row to pull within one (16-15). A kill by McIntyre and back-to-back kills by Rayo created the enough separation to move back on top, 20-15, and won by eight.
 
Of Note:

• NJCU and Bryn Athyn are 1-1 all-time in two meetings. The only previous meeting was a 3-1 NJCU win on October 7, 2012.
• NJCU leads the all-time series with Rosemont, 2-0. Last meeting was a 3-1 win on September 11, 2010 in Langhorne, Pa.

Quotable Knights:
Head Coach Robert Cole (second season), on the first match: "I was not happy with our energy out of the gate. We're a better team than we showed today. Hats off to Bryn Athyn for capitalizing on our errors. But we were flat from the beginning and you can't win if you don't bring your best effort. Shege and Georgina tried to will the team back into it, but we've got to be more confident in our ability and control what we do. The coaching staff is going to watch the film and we're going to put together a great practice plan. We're looking forward to the next opportunity we have to get better."
 
"On the emergence of Haxhaj: "Shege really stepped up her game in the off-season. Coach [Melissa] Loo worked the returners hard during the spring season and Shege busted her back and she's our captain for a reason. We're happy she's starting to turn the corner to be the player we thought she could be, but she's still got a long way to go."
 
What's Next?:
NJCU will play a non-conference match on Tuesday, September 8 at Sarah Lawrence College (7 p.m.) in Bronxville, NY. NJCU is 4-0 all-time against the Gyphons (all four sweeps).