JERSEY CITY,  N.J. (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | In the final matches of the regular season for the New Jersey City University men's volleyball team (13-12), the Gothic Knights defeated Neumann University by a 3-0 count (25-13, 25-14, 25-23) before falling to The Sage Colleges, 3-0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-17) at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (Coach Charlie Brown Court) on April 6.
 
Sage swept Neumann 3-0 (25-12, 25-10, 25-14) in the neutral match in the second match of the tri-match.
 
The Gothic Knights guaranteed a winning record in the regular season and will now await word of a possible bid to the Eastern College Athletic Conference Division III Metro Tournament on April 20.
 
MATCH 1: NJCU 3, Neumann 0 (25-13, 25-14, 25-23)
In the opening match of the day, the Gothic Knights were dominant through the first two sets and then coming back to win the third set, earning a sweep of the Neumann Knights (3-20) in the first-ever meeting between the two sides. There were no lead changes and only one tie through the first two sets, as the Knights used an overpowering attack to ambush Neumann. NJCU landed 14 aces as a team.
 
The Knights used a balanced attack, with no player amassing more than eight kills, but four players with at least six. Sophomore right side Joseph Stawicki (Kearny, NJ/Kearny) led that group with eight kills, while Jeffry Rodriguez (Elizabeth, NJ/John E. Dwyer Technology AcademyElizabeth, N.J. (John E. Dwyer Technology Academy), Alexander Umanzor (West New York, NJ/Memorial), and Jonathan Andrews (North Bergen, NJ/North Bergen) all finished with six kills. Umanzor stuffed the stat sheet, leading the team with 12 assists, five aces, and was second on the team with six digs. Andrews led the way with seven digs and three blocks (two solo) and Rodriguez hit .455 with a line of 6-1-11.
 
For the other Knights, Ryan Bollinger (Woodlyn, Pa.) led the way with eight kills, while Zack Strickland (Claymont, Del.) paced the team with 12 assists and six digs.
 
The Knights were locked in from the start, taking the first six points of the first game, with three aces from Umanzor, two kills from Rodriguez, and a kill from Andrews. They never looked back from there, with Neumann trailing by double digits for most of the first set.
 
In the second, the Knights once again took an early lead, with Neumann tying things at 3-3 before NJCU took the next five points and once again ran away with the set.
 
The Knights of Neumann actually took the early lead in the third set, taking leads of 5-2, 10-7, and 16-9. However, NJCU was able to keep Neumann within striking distance, and they made their move midway through the game, going on an extended 10-3 run to tie things up at 19-19. Neumann retook the lead as late as 23-22, but the Knights took the final three points—highlighted by yet another Umanzor ace—to win the final set, 25-23.
 
MATCH 2: The Sage Colleges 3, Neumann 0 (25-12, 25-10, 25-14)
The Sage Colleges were dominant in their first match of the day, not letting the Knights of Neumann get within arm's length.
 
Senior outside hitter Zackery Karl (West Monroe, N.Y.) tallied a match-high 10 kills, while sophomore setter Ryan Jennings (North Brunswick, N.J.) had an impressive 26 assists. Sophomore outside hitter Mike Basile (Feeding Hills, MA) had a match-high 13 digs.
 
MATCH 3: The Sage Colleges 3, NJCU 0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-17)
The Sage Colleges (11-16) kept up their strong play in the final match of the day, as the host NJCU fell in three sets to the Gators. Sage took advantage of NJCU's error-heavy second set and seemed to get better as the match went along, finishing with 14 kills in the third, as they put the match away in what was the final regular season action of 2019 for both teams.
 
NJCU hit in negative territory for the first time all season—a -.088 in the match—as a dismal second set and a -.391 attack percentage (3-12-23) brought down the team's percentage for the entire contest.
 
The Gators played just seven players the whole match, but they got the most out of each of them, with all but one notching a kill, and all seven recording a dig.
 
The Sage Colleges played well at the net all game, with junior middle hitter Shane Wenz (Valatie, N.Y.) notching three solo blocks, while 6-10 middle hitter Scott Sanders (Los Angeles, Ca.) had two blocks and one assist. Wenz and Karl led the team with eight kills apiece.
 
For the Knights, Andrews led the way with five kills and five digs apiece, and freshman setter Aaron Mantilla (Kearny, NJ/Kearny) led the way with eight assists. Umanzor added two more aces.
 
The first set was a back-and-forth affair with neither team getting out to a lead larger than the final six-point edge for Sage. In the second, the Gators jumped out to an 11-3 lead, with NJCU never getting back to within closer than six. In the final set, the Knights led early (6-5), but the Gators proved too much in the long run, taking 10 of the final 16 points en route to the sweep.
 
OF NOTE:

• Series vs. Neumann:  First-ever meeting. NJCU leads, 1-0.
• Series vs. The Sage Colleges: 14th meeting; Sage leads, 9-5.
• The five aces in match one for Umanzor tie a season (and career) high.
• In the first match, Umanzor reached double-digit assists for the seventh time in 2019 and the eighth time in his NJCU career.

 
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