NEWARK, N.J. — For the first time in program, the New Jersey City University men's volleyball team earned a victory over New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) rival Rutgers-Newark in a series that began back in 2012. The Gothic Knights took on the Scarlet Raiders on the road on Wednesday night, Feb. 21, and toppled them in four sets (25-18, 23-25, 28-26, 25-19), winning a high-stress third set and getting a career-performance from fifth year co-captain middle blocker Brandon DaSilva (Kearny, N.J./Kearny).

NJCU (3-7) started off the first by winning the first four points over Rutgers (6-6), before the Scarlet Raiders came back to make it a 7-5 lead for the Green and Gold. Lead 9-6, the Gothic Knights went on an 8-1 run to go up by 10 at 17-7 — DaSilva had two blocks and freshman outside hitter Marcus Pardasie (Paramus, N.J./Cresskill) had two kills. The home team managed to climb back to within five at 22-18, but three straight points — capped off by a block from Pardasie and DaSilva — gave NJCU the set at 25-18.

The second was tight, with the teams trading points until NJCU went on a 5-1 run to go up 12-8, thanks in part to two kills and two blocks by DaSilva and two blocks for fifth year co-captain opposite James Bajor (Bayonne, N.J./Bayonne). Rutgers-Newark slowly chipped away, however, before taking a two-point, 18-16 lead. The Scarlet Raiders maintained a two-point advantage before winning, 25-23.

The third saw Rutgers lead 3-2 but then NJCU went on a 6-1 run to take an 8-4 lead early on, including a couple of blocks for sophomore middle blocker Amaru Perales (Harrison, N.J./Harrison). The Scarlet Raiders came back to tie it up at 16-16, but the Gothic Knights answered with four of the next five points to go up 20-17. The first set point came with NJCU leading 24-23, but Rutgers took a 25-24 lead. The Green and Gold then tied it up at 25-25 before the home team to the 26-25 lead. A Perales kill and back-to-back Rutgers errors gave NJCU the set, 28-26.

Leading by one heading into the fourth, the Gothic Knights traded with the Scarlet Raiders until they found themselves down, 13-11. At that point, NJCU turned it on with a 7-0 run to go up, 18-13, including three total blocks from Perales. Rutgers cut it back to three at 20-17, but the Green and Gold closed out the match with five of the final seven points, courtesy of Bajor (a kill and a block), Pardasie (two kills) and DaSilva (a block and the match-winning kill).

Highlights:
- DaSilva led all players with 19.0 points, including a match- and career-best 11 total blocks. He added a team-high-tying 11 kills without a single error on 15 swings (.733 hitting percentage) to go with an ace and two digs.
- Bajor finished with 10 kills, five digs, four blocks and an ace, while Pardasie — the three-time reigning NJAC Rookie of the Week — ended with 11 kills as well to go with four digs and two blocks.
- Perales had a career-high seven total blocks to go with seven kills and two errors on 11 swings (.455) and three digs.
- Sophomore setter Alex Casais (Bayonne, N.J./Bayonne) dished out 36 assists and added a career-best six total blocks and seven digs.
- Fifth-year co-captain libero Nico Figueroa (Jersey City, N.J./County Prep) led NJCU with eight digs on the night.

Up Next:
Riding a two-match winning streak, the Gothic Knights finally open home play for the 2024 campaign on Tuesday night, Feb. 27, as #14-ranked New York University comes to the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (JMAC) for a 7:00 p.m. first-serve. The two programs have not met since 2018.