The #9-ranked New York University men's volleyball team (American Volleyball Coaches Association) dropped a three-set decision to #2 Kean University on Thursday night, February 19, in Union, NJ.
The Violets (5-3) were ahead late in the first set, but couldn't hold the advantage en route to a 28-26, 25-15, 25-22 loss to the Cougars (13-0).
After trailing 21-18 in the opening set, NYU rallied and took a 24-23 lead on
Colin LaPorte's service ace. But, the Violets could not close the deal. After
Patrick Merrick put the Violets up again with a kill at 26-25, Kean ran off the next three points for the first-set win.
Things were never close in the second set, but the Violets rallied again in the third and got as close as 22-21 before Kean pulled away for good.
"We were a bit off on our serving game and passing in games one and two, and that allowed them to get a jump on us and play without any pressure," said Head Coach
Jose Pina.
HIGHLIGHTS:- Merrick finished with match-highs of 27 assists and six digs.
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Nick Benson had a match-best 14 kills while hitting .545.
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Chase Klein had double-digit kills (10) while also compiling six digs.
"I think we played better than the stat sheet would indicate," Pina added. "All in all, I thought we played okay. This match will serve us well as the season progresses."
The Violets return to the court this weekend when they travel to Boston, MA, for matches on Saturday at 2pm
(vs. Wentworth Institute of Technology) and Sunday at 12pm
(at Emmanuel College).
