JERSEY CITY, N.J. (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | Freshman right side Alexander Umanzor (West New York, NJ/Memorial) was one dig shy of a triple-double as the New Jersey City University men's volleyball team (9-15) wrapped up the home portion of its 2018 schedule with a 3-1 win over the College of Staten Island, 25-18, 23-25, 25-10, 25-15, in the 'Bayonne Bridge Series' on April 5 at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (Coach Charlie Brown Court).  
 
Umanzor, taking on additional duties as a setter in the last week after an injury to starting sophomore setter Jimmy Vega (Harrison, NJ/Harrison), was up to the task, hitting .500 on attack with a match-high 10 kills (10-2-16) while distributing 18 assists in 40 attempts (.450, 1 error). He defended nine digs, adding two aces and two blocks.
 
Behind his overall play, six Gothic Knights had at least five kills, NJCU hit .320 overall and had a 47-29 margin in kills. NJCU also unleashed 13 aces in the win while Staten Island (6-13) had just one ace in the contest.
 
Sophomore middle blocker Julian Moreira (Miami, FL/Alonzo and Tracy Mourning Biscayne Bay Campus) hit .643 with nine kills and no errors (9-0-14) and rejected his 100th career block. Freshman middle Dave Etienne (Jersey City, NJ/Dickinson) added seven kills (.286, 7-3-14), five blocks, including three solo stuffs, and four aces.
 
Also for NJCU, sophomore outside hitter J.J. Berdecia (West New York, NJ/Memorial) had eight kills (.278, 8-3-18), nine digs and two aces and rookie outside Alcides Dos Reis (Belleville, NJ/Belleville) put away seven kills (.263, 7-2-19). Rookie setter Luis Ayala (Elizabeth, NJ/Elizabeth) dished 21 assists in 39 attempts (.538). Freshman right side Joseph Stawicki (Kearny, NJ/Kearny) contributed five kills.
 
For Staten Island, three players had seven kills. Sophomore Zebin Guo had seven kills and 11 digs. Junior setter Adil El Haddad (Brooklyn, N.Y.) finished with 24 assists.
 
NJCU had a 71 percent sideout rate in the win (49-69). NJCU had double figures in kills in each of the first three sets.
 
SET ONE:
In the opening game, NJCU hit .429 with 12 kills, behind Umanzor who had five assists and four kills in six swings (.667). Trailing 16-14, NJCU used an 8-0 run to pull in front 22-16. The Knights scored 11 of the final 13 points of the set. Dos Reis had two kills during the 8-0 run and Ayala had a pair of aces. There were 10 ties and six lead changes in the game.
 
SET TWO:
There were 10 ties and four lead changes in the second set. NJCU had 14 kills in game two but couldn't finish off the Dolphins. CSI had 13 winners (13-6-33, .212). NJCU led 16-13 before the Dolphins had four straight points. After ties at 17-17, 18-18, 19-19, 20-20, 21-21 and 22-22, a kill by Etienne gave NJCU back a one-point lead. But a kill by Guo tied it, his ace put CSI in front, 24-23 and a kill by junior Tairou Diaman (Bronx, N.Y.) sealed a two-point win. Umanzor was hitting .636 (7-0-11) and Moreira .667 (6-0-9) through two sets.
 
SET THREE:
NJCU led wire-to-wire in game three, hitting .417 with 12 kills (12-2-24) and limited Staten Island to a -.227 attack (2-7-22). Behind the serving of Berdecia, NJCU built a commanding 13-2 lead and expanded it to 19-4 with freshman Jerlis Vasquez (West New York, NJ/Memorial) behind the service line.
 
SET FOUR:
NJCU had nine kills in the fourth game and trailed just once. Leading 7-5, Etienne unleashed three consecutive aces and after a kill by Berdecia, Etienne served a fourth ace for a 13-5 lead as the Knights cruised to the 25-15 win.

QUOTABLE KNIGHTS: Postgame interviews with Alexander Umanzor (West New York, NJ/Memorial), Julian Moreira (Miami, FL/Alonzo and Tracy Mourning Biscayne Bay Campus), Joseph Stawicki (Kearny, NJ/Kearny) and head coach Jorge Rodriguez on Facebook Live: https://www.facebook.com/NJCUGothicKnights/videos/10155812405814915/

 NOTABLES:

• Bayonne Bridge Series vs. Staten Island. NJCU leads, 5-0. Game two was the first set won by Staten Island; the other four meetings were 3-0 sweeps.
• Alexander Umanzor (West New York, NJ/Memorial) produced his third effort of 10+ kills as a collegian. The 18 assists were twice his previous career high.

 
UP NEXT:
NJCU concludes its 29th season of intercollegiate competition on Saturday, April 7 when it heads to Albany, N.Y. for a tri-match at The Sage Colleges. NJCU faces Lehman in a neutral court match at 1 p.m. before facing Sage at 3 p.m. Lehman outlasted NJCU, 3-2, in Jersey City on February 8. It will be the 42nd meeting in a series NJCU leads, 26-15. NJCU has won 21 of the last 24 meetings; Lehman has won the last two meetings. Meanwhile, Sage won both meetings between the schools in 2017 as former Skyline Conference opponents; the Gators have a 7-5 edge in 12 previous meetings.
 
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