JERSEY CITY, N.J. – The New Jersey City University men's volleyball team had played and lost to Ramapo College 27 consecutive times entering the match up with the Roadrunners tonight, Thursday, March 10, however some standout performances for the Gothic Knights led NJCU to its first win over RCNJ – a four-set victory (25-23, 25-20, 17-25, 25-17) – since March 9, 2006. Head coach
Carlo Edra was a junior that season and the starting libero for the Green and Gold.
The loss is the first in Skyline Conference play for the season for Ramapo (9-9, 5-1 Skyline), while the Gothic Knights (13-6, 3-2 Skyline) rise above the .500 mark in conference competition for the first time this year. The first set was an even one before NJCU used a late 6-1 run to start to pull away and hold a 20-13 lead. However, the Roadrunners fired right back with a 9-2 run of their own to tie it up at 23-23. Following a Ramapo service error, senior outside hitter
Jonathan Andrews (North Bergen, N.J./North Bergen) took a couple shots at ending it in the final rally before his classmate and setter
Leo Ferrari (Kearny, N.J./Kearny) set him up for the winning kill. Andrews and junior middle blocker
Brandon DaSilva (Kearny, N.J./Kearny) combined for nine kills in that set, while Ferrari assisted 11 of the team's 12 and recorded a pair of aces.
NJCU flew out to a 7-3 lead early in the second set, which included a pair of kills from Andrews, as well as back-to-back slams for DaSilva. However, the Roadrunners managed to claw their way back into the set before tying it up at 11-11. The match was within two points late as Jersey City led 19-17. At that point, junior outside hitter
Hanel Collado (North Bergen, N.J./North Bergen) – who had his best performance of the season by far – recorded a pair of kills to help his team take a 23-18 lead. Andrews scored two of the set's final three points with a pair of kills to lock in the five-point win.
Trailing by two sets, Ramapo found some fire in between the second and third and started out early with a strong eight-point, 13-5 lead that NJCU was unable to fully come back against. The Gothic Knights got as close as five points on several occasions, as late as 19-14 following a Roadrunner service error. Unfortunately, Ramapo was able to cut its match deficit in half by taking set number three.
Leading by just one early on at 6-5, Collado and Andrews each registered a pair of kills to make it a four-point, 10-6 lead. The Roadrunners never closer than within two for the remainder of the final set of the night. Back to within two points at 13-11, NJCU pushed back against RCNJ with the help of a couple kills from junior opposite
James Bajor (Bayonne, N.J./Bayonne), as well as a red card against Ramapo's coach – the Roadrunners were called for a yellow and two reds on the night, which contributed to NJCU's eventual victory. A 7-2 run to make it 24-15 was a huge momentum builder as Jersey City looked to close out the match. Andrews and Collado each had two kills during this run, while DaSilva and Ferrari combined for a big block. Leading 24-17, Andrews eventually sealed it with a kill to clinch NJCU's HUGE win over the Roadrunners.
This was the first time NJCU has topped RCNJ at home since earlier in that 2006 season (February 18), when the squad bested the Roadrunners in five sets – Edra had 15 digs in that one.
Highlights:
- Andrews led all players with 23 kills and just four errors on 51 swings (.373 hitting percentage). He also nearly had a double-double, finishing with eight digs to go with two blocks, an ace and an assist.
- Collado had a season-high 10 kills on 20 swings with just two errors (.400), adding a solo block and nine digs.
- DaSilva had a strong night, finishing with nine kills, a match-high-tying three total blocks and an ace.
- Bajor tied the match-high with a career-best 17 digs, adding eight kills and two total blocks.
- Ferrari dished out a match-best 43 helpers to go with a match-high-tying two aces, three digs and a pair of blocks.
- Sophomore
Mahmoud Serour (Kearny, N.J./Kearny) got the nod at libero tonight and made clutch digs throughout the match. He finished with a career-best 13.
Up Next:
NJCU next faces the final remaining undefeated Skyline squad in St. Joseph's College-Long Island on Monday night, March 14, at 7:00 p.m. After defeating the Golden Eagles to capture the program's first-ever conference title and NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball Tournament bid last season, the Gothic Knights were bested by St. Joe's this past weekend in straight sets. The Green and Gold look to avenge that loss with a scheduled-7:00 p.m. match against SJC on Monday at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (JMAC).
