Rutgers-Newark, led by tournament MVP Derek Au, downed NJCU in three sets to win the ECAC Championship.
Scarlet Raiders claim ECAC Men's Volleyball Championship
NEWARK, NJ - Rutgers University-Newark toppled New Jersey City University in three sets Saturday to claim the ECAC Men’s Volleyball Championship. The Scarlet Raiders took the frames
25-13, 25-18, 25-18 to earn the sweep on its home court at The Golden Dome in Newark. Rutgers-Newark did not drop a set in either the semifinal or championship match.
Offensively, Rutgers-Newark was led by Alex Solodky who had a match-high nine kills. Massimo Roco added seven kills while Sean Spring racked up six. Tournament MVP Derek Au contributed 26 assists, to go along with 32 in the Scarlet Raiders’ semifinal win over Ramapo, giving the graduate student 58 assists in just six sets. NJCU was paced by Marcus Pardasie, an all-tournament selection, with eight kills, the second-best mark of the match. Alex Casais tallied 17 assists for the Gothic Knights.
On the defensive end, Evam Jazmin led the way with six digs for Rutgers-Newark while Casais headed NJCU with three. Au and Roco both had solo blocks for the Scarlet Raiders. The Gothic Knights did not record a solo block, but Pardasie picked up a team-best two block assists.
Rutgers-Newark never trailed in the opening set. The Scarlet Raiders scored seven of the first 10 points. A Roco kill put them up by six for the first time at 10-4. The advantage became seven at 14-7 thanks to a kill by Solodky. The lead never dropped below seven and grew to nine at 21-12 after another Roco kill. Rutgers-Newark finished the set in style with three consecutive kills, two by Solodky and one by Au, to go ahead 1-0.
NJCU kept it close in the early going of the second set. The two squads split the first four points, and, after the Scarlet Raiders took an 11-8 lead, the Gothic Knights scored three in a row, tying the frame at 11. That was as close as NJCU got, however, A Solodky kill made it 12-11 in favor of Rutgers-Newark, which never looked back. The Gothic Knights held the deficit within four until the Scarlet Raiders took a 21-16 lead. They closed the frame by claiming four of the final six points to take a 2-0 advantage.
Needing to win the third to keep the match alive, the Gothic Knights raced to a 4-0 lead. The advantage grew as high as five at 9-4, but the Scarlet Raiders then scored six of the next seven to tie the set at 10. An Au kill, one of five on the match for the setter and tournament MVP, gave Rutgers-Newark the lead for the first time in the set and, much like in the second, the Scarlet Raiders never looked back. A service ace by Aleks Kolodziej made it 21–15 in favor of Rutgers-Newark, who once again finished strong with four of the final seven points to complete the sweep.
The Scarlet Raiders managed 42 kills with a .359 hitting percentage, 10 service aces, 33 assists and 23 digs. The Gothic Knights had 23 kills to go along with a .169 hitting percentage, 3 service aces, 21 assists and 12 digs. Rutgers-Newark ended its season with a 24-10 record and the ECAC championship, while NJCU closed at 23-10 on the year.
All-Tournament Team
Reece Kirchofer - Ramapo
Ahmed Mohamed - Hunter
Marcus Pardasie - NJCU
Matt Peralta - NJCU
Aidan Apito - Rutgers-Newark
Massimo Roco - Rutgers-Newark
MVP - Derek Au - Rutgers-Newark