NEW YORK — The New Jersey City University men's volleyball team split a pair of Skyline Conference matches on Sunday, March 5, on the campus of Yeshiva University. The Gothic Knights began with a three-set sweep of the hosting Maccabees (25-8, 25-13, 25-12) before falling to defending champs St. Joseph's University-Long Island in three sets (32-30, 25-13, 25-17).
Jersey City (8-5, 2-1 Skyline) started off with the sweep of Yeshiva (3-8, 0-2 Skyline) behind a strong offensive output from senior
Leo Ferrari (Kearny, N.J./Kearny), who notched five kills, five digs and a match-best seven aces in his return to the outside hitter position. Additionally, junior outside
Mahmoud Serour (Kearny, N.J./Kearny) led NJCU with seven digs and added four kills and a pair of aces, while freshman setter
Alex Casais (Bayonne, N.J./Bayonne) led all players with a match-high 20 assists to go with three aces and three digs.
Highlights:
- Junior oppositte
Kenneth Gil (North Bergen, N.J./North Bergen) led all players with seven kills to go with three digs and an ace.
- Sophomore middle blocker
Mike McGehee (Avondale, Ariz./Agua Fria) had six kills with no errors on nine swings (.667 hitting percentage).
- Senior outside hitter
James Bajor (Bayonne, N.J./Bayonne) had five kills and one error on 10 swings (.400) in just one set.
Bajor stood out, along with fellow senior co-captain
Brandon DaSilva (Kearny, N.J./Kearny), who was dominant in the middle against the Golden Eagles (8-5, 2-0 Skyline). Bajor led all players with 12 kills and added five digs and three blocks, while DaSilva totaled a match-high-tying seven blocks to go with seven kills.
The first set was a high-scoring one, with NJCU trailing by as many as five as late 19-14. The Gothic Knights came all the way back, however and took several one-point leads at 23-22, 24-23, 25-26 and 28-27. Unfortunately it was St. Joe's that won five of the final seven points to take the early 1-0 lead with the 32-30 win. Fresh off that high-scoring set, as well as the three-set match just prior, Jersey City was unable to get back to that point and dropped the second and third sets in the loss.
Highlights:
- Casais dished out 22 assists to go with a match-high-tying eight digs, five total blocks, a kill and an ace.
- Senior libero
Daniel Esteva (Union, N.J./Union) had seven digs and a pair of assists.
Up Next:
The Gothic Knights return to action on Friday, March 10, at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (JMAC) as they host a pair of non-conference foes for a tri-match. Action begins at 11:00 a.m. against #RV Wentworth Institute of Technology. The squad then hosts Misericordia University at 3:00 p.m.
