JERSEY CITY, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com)...New Jersey City University held match point in the fourth set, but the College of Saint Elizabeth overcame the deficit and survived a Gothic Knight rally in the fifth game to defeat NJCU, 3-2 (13-24, 26-24, 14-25, 26-24, 15-11) in a non-conference match played on October 23 at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center.
In the second meeting of the season between the clubs, the Screaming Eagles (21-7) won consecutive matches against NJCU (9-19) for the first time since winning three straight matches in the 1988, 1989 and 1990 seasons. NJCU leads the all-time series, 25-8; CSE swept an October 13 meeting between the clubs in Morristown, 25-17, 25-23, 25-20.
CSE came into the match without their starting setter and leader in aces per set Amy Cooper due to a non-sport related injury a mere 3 hours before the start of the match. The Eagles won their 21st match of the season despite committing nine more attack errors (33) than kills (24), but managed to survive by using its clear size advantage to reject 11.0 total blocks. NJCU had 37 kills, 16 aces and 6.0 blocks in defeat, losing for the first time in five sets this season.
St. Elizabeth hit -.077 for the match and had a red percentage in four of five sets. But the Eagles received solid defense in the backrow and at the net. It was the second time this season NJCU held an opponent to a negative attack percentage and the first time in 11 years that NJCU has lost a match when the opponent had a negative hitting percentage (October 6, 2001 vs. Montclair State University, -.036).
Sophomore libero Rachel Hausler (Lebanon Township, NJ/Voorhees) tallied a match-best 18 digs and equaled the night high with six aces. Junior Subhana Wrights (Lawrence Township, NJ/Lawrence), the 6-foot-1 middle, was key at the net with eight blocks, including three solo stuffs.
Sophomore 6-foot-0 opposite Ireyah Stevens (Plainfield, NJ/Plainfield) collected six assisted blocks and three kills. Sophomore setter Jenae Goodson (South Plainfield, NJ/South Plainfield) finished with 14 assists, eight digs and two aces to overcome seven ball handling errors. Also for CSE, sophomore outside hitter Katie Cooper (Succasunna, NJ/Roxbury) had 12 digs and six kills and senior defensive specialist Nashlly Sokoli (Newark, NJ/St. Vincent's Academy) finished with 11 digs.
NJCU dominated the first set, leading from start to finish while hitting .240 as a team with nine winners. CSE hit -.087 in the period. The Knights burst out to a 15-6 lead behind Scarpa who hit .300 in the game and the Eagles could not recover.
The second and fourth sets saw NJCU bouncing back from deficits and each time falling in extra points by a 26-24 result. In game two, both teams had a negative percentage (-.100, NJCU; -.115, CSE) and there were seven ties and three lead changes. Tied at 21-21, CSE twice gained two-point leads at 23-21 and 24-22. NJCU tied it on an opponent attack error and a Martinez ace at 24-24, before sophomore middle Kiara Francisco (Newark, NJ/Marylawn of the Oranges), who had
a block for the 23rd point, landed a kill for the 25th point and NJCU committed an attack error on set point.
Another dominant third set gave NJCU a 2-1 lead in the match. The Knights owned a 2:1 margin in kills, 12-6, and hit .250 in the game (12-4-32). Tied at 4-4, NJCU scored six straight points behind the serving of Stevenson and opened up a 17-9 advantage that CSE could not overcome.
In the fourth set each team again hit in the red, but NJCU clawed back from a huge 18-11 deficit, scoring six consecutive points behind the serving of Martinez, including back-to-back aces to pull within one, 18-17. CSE reopened a 21-17 cushion after a kill by Goodson and a combo block by Stevens and Francisco, who had three blocks on the night. Another double block by Stevens and Wright made it 23-20.
The Knights reeled off four consecutive points to vault ahead, 24-23 as CSE committed an attack error, Medley floored a kill, and NJCU tied it on a double block by Martinezand Hatcher. For Martinez, who had most of the contact on the stuff, it was only her third block of the season. Garcia then unleashed a kill for a 24-23 lead to give NJCU match point. But after a CSE timeout, the Eagles scrambled off an out-of-system play that tempted the Knights into a crucial blocking error on set point as CSE survived, 26-24, to force a fifth set.Goodson hit .800 in the fourth period with four kills (4-0-5).
The Knights started the fifth set ice cold and the Eagles capitalized—never trailing in the game. The Eagles jumped out to an 8-1 advantage as NJCU committed four straight attack errors and six in the first eight points. The Knights were able to whittle the deficit to 9-6 on a kill from Hatcher, and after the guests reclaimed a 12-7 behind the serving of Hausler and Sokolli, the Eagles had reestablished the five-point edge. NJCU continued to fight back, drawing within one, 12-11, after three straight attack errors from the Eagles. But after a CSE timeout, Cooper floored a kill and NJCU committed back-to-back attack miscues, its ninth and 10th of the period, as CSE escaped, 15-11.
CSE extended its winning streak to a record high 9 wins and a program best 21 wins. The Eagles will host The Cooper Union in their final home match of this season this Friday, October 26th, at 7pm in St. Joseph's Hall as part of CSE's Dig Pink event.
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