Men's Volleyball Gains First Win of the Season

#4 Violets Victorious in Four Games Over Hunter

Nick Capriccio had 13 kills, including three straight to win the crucial second set.

Box Score

The New York University men's volleyball team notched its first victory of the season with a 3-1 (22-25, 26-24, 25-21, 25-15) win over Hunter College on Saturday, January 21, at the Rutgers-Newark Golden Dome Classic in Newark, NJ.

The Violets, ranked #4 in the preseason American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 15 Division III Poll, opened their regular season yesterday with a tough five-set loss to Rutgers-Newark.

After dropping tonight's first set and trailing 24-23 in the second, Connor Mortland connected with Nick Capriccio for three straight kills, giving the Violets a 26-24 second-set victory.

“Nick changed the momentum for us today. If we are going to succeed going forward, we need Nick to step up as our second option,” said NYU head coach Pina.

Capriccio added 10 more kills, giving him a total of 13 for the match, as the Violets had a much easier time in the third and fourth sets.

NYU's first option, co-captain Pat Dodd, also had an impressive night. Dodd recorded a team- and career-high 21 kills.

“This Hunter team was much improved from the one we competed against last year,” Pina said. “It was our ball control that was the difference tonight.”

The Violets cut their errors in half overnight. After committing a disappointing 35 attack errors against Rutgers-Newark, NYU only had 17 attack errors vs. Hunter.

Setter Mortland racked up 52 assists, while opposite/middle blocker Luke Hamlet recorded 10 kills.

For the Hawks, Chris Newcomb had a team-best 14 kills.

The Violets' next match is Wednesday, Jan. 25, at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, NY. First serve is set for 7:00 pm.