JERSEY CITY, N.J. — The New Jersey City University men's volleyball team fell behind early, 2-0, in a home Skyline Conference tilt against New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) rival Ramapo College at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (JMAC) on Saturday afternoon, March 11. Senior middle blocker Brandon DaSilva (Kearny, N.J./Kearny) could do no wrong throughout the match and led all players with a career-high-tying 19 kills on 26 swings with just two errors (.654 hitting percentage). NJCU eventually came back to win the third set definitively and nearly forced a decisive fifth set before falling in extra points to the Roadrunners in the fourth, 26-24, for the four-set loss (25-23, 25-14, 18-25, 26-24).

The Gothic knights (9-7, 2-2 Skyline) and the Roadrunners (9-6, 3-0 Skyline) went point for point with neither squad getting any real edge. Eventually the Gothic Knights trailed 24-21 but got back-to-back kills on a dump by freshman setter Alex Casais (Bayonne, N.J./Bayonne) and DaSilva to make it 24-23 and force a Ramapo timeout. The visitors did manage to get the final point out of the break and take the early 1-0 match lead. The Roadrunners then took complete control in the second set, winning 25-14, forcing head coach Carlo Edra to shift his lineup slightly, moving senior Leo Ferrari (Kearny, N.J./Kearny) back to setter for the third and bringing in sophomores Mike McGehee (Avondale, Ariz./Agua Fria) at outside and Nate Aguilar (Kearny, N.J./Kearny) at middle, as well as some expanded time for junior Nico Figueroa (Jersey City, N.J./County Prep) on the back row.

Those moves paid off in spades as the Green and Gold came back to win the third, 25-18, and force a fourth set. Tied up at 4-4, NJCU notched six of the next seven points, including kills from Aguilar, Dasilva and the first of the season for junior defensive specialist Leandro Perez (Elizabeth, N.J./Kearny). Ramapo got it back to 13-11 before NJCU won six of the next eight points to take an 18-12 lead — McGehee and Ferrari each had kills during this stretch. Up by seven at 21-14, the two teams alternated the next eight points before NJCU won it.

Jersey City took control early in the fourth, jumping out to an 8-2 lead, thanks in part to two kills and a block assist from senior opposite James Bajor (Bayonne, N.J./Bayonne). Dasilva had a block an and assist, while junior outside hitter Mahmoud Serour (Kearny, N.J./Kearny) had a serious solo block. Ramapo, however, came back with a 7-1 run to tie it up at 9-9. The teams then traded the lead back and forth nearly a dozen times before the two were all tied up at 24-24. The Roadrunners won the last two points to close out the match, 3-1.

Highlights:
- Bajor finished with 10 kills and six digs, while Ferrari had 28 assists, eight digs, five kills and two aces.
- Senior libero Daniel Esteva (Union, N.J./Union) led all players with 15 digs, while Figueroa ended with seven.
- Serour and McGehee each had five kills. Casais finished with 15 assists.

Up Next:
Jersey City returns to action back at the JMAC on Tuesday, March 14, beginning at 7:00 p.m. as Skyline foe Yeshiva University comes to the West Side.