NEWARK, NJ – The Iona University Volleyball team faced off against New Haven and NJIT in the last day of the NJIT Tournament. After being swept by the Chargers in the first match, the Gaels bounced back as they defeated the Highlanders in five sets to close the NJIT Tournament.
MATCH ONE: New haven: 3, IOna: 0
SET 1: The first point of the match for the Maroon & Gold came via a New Haven attack error, sparking a 3-1 start capped off by a service ace from sophomore Gabby Taylor. The Chargers responded with a 4-1 run to take their first lead of the match at 5-4. With the score knotted at seven following a kill from freshman Alex Patsos, New Haven went on a 7-1 run to take a 14-8 lead. Sophomore Julia Leonardo looked to end the run with a kill, but the Chargers responded with four straight points to extend their lead to 18-9. With New Haven leading 21-12, the Gaels surged with four unanswered points, featuring two service aces from Leonardo and a kill from junior Katherine Ferng, to cut the deficit to five. The surge would not be enough, as the Chargers closed the set on a 4-1 run to take the first set, 25-17.
SET 2: New Haven picked up where it left off in the first set, using two kills and an Iona error to take an early 3-0 lead. Both teams continued to trade points, with the Gaels cutting the deficit to one following a kill from senior Ezzie Thompson to make the score 8-7. The Chargers responded with four straight points to take a 12-7 lead. The Gaels answered with seven unanswered points, featuring a joint block from Leonardo and senior Buse Tinaz, another joint block from Ferng and Tinaz, a kill from Tinaz and a kill from Thompson to give Iona a 15-13 lead. The lead would not last long, as the Chargers responded with 10 unanswered points to take a 23-15 advantage. New Haven closed out the set, 25-17, to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
SET 3: The third set began as a back-and-forth battle before the Chargers scored six unanswered points to take an 11-6 lead. During a 3-1 Iona run, freshman Reese Henderson and Thompson recorded a joint block, while freshman Grace Daniels and Tinaz added another joint block to bring the Gaels within three at 12-9. New Haven responded with three straight points to push its lead back to six at 15-9. Following two Iona points from junior Kari Smith and a Chargers attack error, the Gaels cut the deficit to four at 15-11. New Haven then scored five straight points to extend its lead to 20-11. The Gaels continued to battle, responding with a 5-1 run featuring kills from Smith and Leonardo to cut the deficit to five. The late push would not be enough, as the Chargers closed the set on a 4-1 run to win 25-17 and take the match in three straight sets.
IONA PERFORMERS
- Thompson led the Gaels with five kills.
- Tinaz recorded a team-high six blocks.
- Daniels led the team with 15 assists.
- Patsos was the defensive leader for the Gaels with eight digs.
THE OPPONENT
- MacKellar led the team with 18 kills and tied for the team lead with 13 digs.
- Harris also recorded 13 digs to tie for the team lead.
- Lynch totaled four blocks on the day.
- Kearns led the team with 33 assists.
MATCH TWO: IOna: 3, njit: 2
SET 1: To begin the second match, the Maroon & Gold had an early hole to climb out of as the Highlanders opened the set on a 6-2 run. The Gaels quietly answered back with a 4-1 run, started by a kill from Leonardo and capped off by a kill from Smith, to bring Iona within one at 7-6. NJIT responded with a 4-2 run of its own to push its lead back to three at 11-8. Kills from Smith, Tinaz and sophomore Emma Koceja helped knot the score at 11 and bring the Gaels right back into the set. With the score tied at 11, back-to-back kills from Leonardo gave Iona its first lead of the set at 13-12. The Highlanders would not allow the Gaels to hold the lead for long, scoring four straight points to take a 16-14 advantage. Trailing 19-16, the Maroon & Gold responded with a 5-1 run to take a 21-20 lead. After NJIT regained the lead with two consecutive points, Iona closed the set on a 4-1 run featuring two kills from Smith, a kill from Leonardo and a block from Tinaz to take the set, 25-23.
SET 2: In set two, the Gaels once again found themselves in an early hole as NJIT opened the set on a 5-1 run. Iona responded with four unanswered points, featuring kills from Leonardo, Ferng and freshman Anissa Cooper, to knot the score at five. The Gaels regained the lead following back-to-back kills from Cooper and Leonardo to make it 7-6. After NJIT tied the score at seven, a kill sparked a 7-0 run for Iona, capped off by a kill from senior Sanem Bas, to push the lead to 14-7. The Gaels later extended their advantage to nine as NJIT got no closer than five. A kill from Tinaz, a block from Tinaz and Koceja, an ace from Smith and a kill from Koceja made the score 19-10. Iona continued to control the set late, closing on a 6-2 run capped off by a kill from Cooper to take the set, 25-12.
SET 3: The third set began as a back-and-forth battle, with both teams trading points until the score was knotted at six. The Highlanders then scored four straight points to take a 10-6 lead. With the Gaels inching closer at 12-9, NJIT answered with three consecutive points to push its lead to six. Trailing 18-12, Iona used a kill from Koceja, two service aces from Daniels and a kill from Ferng to fight its way back into the set, cutting the deficit to 18-16. Despite the late rally from the Gaels, the Highlanders closed the third set with five unanswered points to take the set, 25-18.
SET 4: The first point of the fourth set came from a joint block by Leonardo and Tinaz. The teams then traded points, with the score tied at seven. NJIT took the lead following a kill, but the Maroon & Gold responded with two straight points to take a 9-8 advantage. The Highlanders answered with a kill of their own to knot the score at nine. Iona then went on a 3-1 run to take a 12-10 lead, capped off by a block from Cooper and Ferng. With the Gaels leading 12-11, Iona went on a 5-1 run to create a five-point cushion. The lead would not last long, as the Highlanders scored seven unanswered points to regain the lead and take a 19-17 advantage. NJIT continued its late push to close out the set, winning 25-20 and forcing a decisive fifth set.
SET 5: The Gaels started the decisive fifth set strong as a joint block from Tinaz and Leonardo, a kill from Koceja and a kill from Leonardo gave Iona an early three-point lead. After NJIT scored two points, the Gaels responded with a 6-2 run capped off by a kill from Daniels to take a 9-4 advantage. Iona extended its lead to eight following three unanswered points as the Maroon & Gold moved closer to securing the match. With the score at 12-7, kills from Ferng, Tinaz and Leonardo helped close out the set and the match as the Gaels came out on top, 15-8, to secure the victory.
IONA PERFORMERS
- Leonardo recorded a double-double with 17 kills and 15 digs, while adding six blocks.
- Tinaz led the team with seven blocks.
- Reding paced the offense with a team-high 22 assists.
- Gaume led the defense with 24 digs.
THE OPPONENT
- Fontaine led the attack with 14 kills.
- McAndrew led the team with 29 assists and also recorded 10 digs.
- Akay led the team with 23 digs.
NEXT MATCH
The Maroon and Gold return to action on Friday as they return home to face off against Quinnipiac for the Metro opener. First serve scheduled for 5 p.m.
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