The New York University men's volleyball team defeated visiting Ramapo College in straight sets (25-18, 27-25, 25-20) on Tuesday, March 28, at the Brooklyn Athletic Facility.

NYU, ranked #7 in the most recent American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) poll, improved to 13-7 on the season, while the Roadrunners dropped to 15-10.

"Overall, I think we played well," said Head Coach Jose Pina. "We went five sets with them the past two years, so it was good to come away with three-set win tonight."

After Ramapo scored the first point of the match, the Violets answered with four straight and never looked back en route to the first set victory. NYU closed the opening set on a Roadrunner service error.

The Violets scored the first two points of the second set, but found themselves down by as many as five, 14-9, midway through the frame. The hosts came back to tie it at 19 and eventually won the set 27-25 on a Ramapo attack error.

"We just needed to clean up and refocus," added Pina. "Once we did that, we took over the set and were able to take a 2-0 lead instead of being tied 1-1."

NYU also had to come from behind in the third set after trailing 18-16 late in the frame. The Violets once again refocused and were able to score the next four points, before ultimately winning the set by five points, with the match-clinching point coming on a kill from Stephen Tan.

HIGHLIGHTS:

- Alex Li recorded a match-high 20 kills for NYU.

"He's continuing to improve and becoming more consistent," explained Pina. "He had a tremendous offensive match, getting 20 kills in just three sets."

- Derrick Chiu dished out a match-best 36 assists in the win.

- The Violets improved to 6-1 at home this season and won their eighth straight-set match.. 

NYU returns to action on Thursday, March 30, when it travels uptown to take on Hunter College. First serve is set for 7pm at the Sportsplex.