NEW YORK, N.Y. (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | The New Jersey City University men's volleyball team hit an impressive .329 as a team with 33 kills as it powered past the City College of New York, 3-0 (25-17, 25-20, 25-19) in non-conference action on February 27 at the Nat Holman Gymnasium. NJCU limited the Beavers (9-4) to a .095 attack percentage (30-22-84).
 
NJCU evened its record at 6-6 overall as junior outside hitter Jonathan Andrews (North Bergen, NJ/North Bergen) led the attack with a .529 percentage, smashing 11 kills (two errors) in 17 attempts with six digs, two aces and two blocks. Sophomore setter Leo Ferrara handed out 30 assists with three aces and two blocks. 
 
Sophomore middle blocker Jeffry Rodriguez (Elizabeth, NJ/John E. Dwyer Technology AcademyElizabeth, N.J. (John E. Dwyer Technology Academy) hit .455 with six kills (6-1-11) and two blocks and freshman middle Brandon DaSilva (Kearny, NJ/Kearny) added six kills, hitting .300 (6-3-10) with four more blocks. Freshman libero Richard Valentin (Piscataway, NJ/Piscataway) defended seven digs.
 
CCNY received a team-high 10 kills from senior outside Carlos Maldonado Madrid (Honduras), who hit .261 (10-4-23) with six digs. Junior setter Andrew Chan (Flushing, N.Y.) finished with 21 assists.
 

NJCU hit .500 in a dominant opening set with 14 kills (14-2-24). Up one early, NJCU reeled off five consecutive points, including a pair of kills from freshman outside Nicolas Figueroa (Jersey City, NJ/County Prep), for an 11-5 lead. NJCU added another four-point run to push the lead to 15-6 to run away with the set.
 
Both teams had 10 kills in the second set but the Knights hit .318 and forced CCNY into six errors. Down 3-0, NJCU unleashed a 9-1 run to grab a 9-4 advantage. DaSilva had two blocks and Ferrari three aces during the stretch. NJCU cruised to a comfortable win in the game.
 
NJCU's attack fell to nine kills in the third set but its net defense kept CCNY off balance as the Beavers committed 10 attack errors. NJCU was down one (10-9) before scoring the next three and six of the next seven for a 15-11 margin. Three more CCNY errors extended NJCU's cushion to 18-12 and a 4-0 run gave the Knights a 23-15 lead it used to close out the sweep.
 
OF NOTE:

• Series: 35th meeting. NJCU leads the all-time series, 28-7, and has  won 18 of the last 20 meetings.
• Jonathan Andrews (North Bergen, NJ/North Bergen) reached double-digit kills for the eighth time in 11 matches in 2020, and the 16th time in his NJCU career.

 
UP NEXT:

• NJCU hosts its first Skyline Conference tri-match of the season on Saturday, February 29 with an early start time of 9 a.m. at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (Coach Charlie Brown Court). NJCU plays Sarah Lawrence in the opening contest before meeting Mount Saint Vincent at 1 p.m. Sarah Lawrence and CMSV play in a neutral match at 11 a.m.

 
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