The New York University women's volleyball team, currently ranked #22 in the nation, split their doubleheader against #25 Christopher Newport University and Montclair State University at the NYU Invitational on Saturday, September 13, at the John A. Paulson Center in Manhattan.

In a back-and-forth opening match, the Violets dropped a five-setter to Christopher Newport 25-19, 14-25, 21-25, 25-23, 15-13.

NYU led 18-15 in the opening set, but a six-point run for the Captains gave them the lead for good.

Christopher Newport kept its momentum into the second set, taking a quick 3-0 lead. The Violets caught up at 6-6, fell behind 7-6, and then used a 5-0 run to take a lead (which grew to as any as 12 points) it never relinquished. 

NYU trailed 7-5 in the third set, but used a 6-0 streak to grab the lead. With the Violets still ahead by four, 20-16, the Captains scored the next three points to inch within one. However, consecutive kills from Coco Barton kept the Violets in front as they went on to take a 2-1 set advantage. 

The Violets grabbed a pair of early three-point leads in the fourth set, but nine ties ensued, the final one at 23-23. An NYU attack error and a Christopher Newport kill followed as the Captains evened the match 2-2. 

In the final set, NYU scored the first three points. The set was tied 8-8 when the Violets went on a 5-2 run and led 13-10. However, the Captains scored the next five points to clinch the tense top-25 match-up. 

"I think it was a good lesson about how we can focus on controlling the controllables," said Head Coach Andrew Brown. "It was a good test of where we want to continue to invest with our mental toughness and risk-taking as we prepare over the next couple weeks before UAA play." 

Barton finished with 12 kills and hit .375. Chloe Hynes led the Violets with 17 kills, while Grace Nelson also had 12. Both Ava Launsbach (25) and Alden Roberts (22) had double-digit assists, while Felicia Wu (13) and Duru Topcu (10) reached double-digit digs. 

Nelson and Launsbach each added four service aces.

The Violets closed out the doubleheader with a four-set victory over Montclair State 23-25, 25-14, 25-12, 25-19.

The nail-biting first set included five lead changes and 11 ties, including at 20-20. A kill from Montclair State ignited a three-point run that put the Red Hawks on top for good.

The Violets and Red Hawks traded points back and forth to begin the second set until a six-point NYU run at 10-9 comfortably put the Violets ahead for the rest of the set. 

NYU capitalized on the momentum from the second set and cruised to a third-set victory. The Violets only trailed twice and took a permanent lead after consecutive service aces from Alden Roberts at 6-6. 

Montclair State took an early 10-5 lead to begin the fourth set, but NYU knotted the score back up at 10-10, and again at 12-12. A kill from Chloe Lemons gave the edge to the Violets who never trailed after that. 

"We did a good job processing a tough loss, but then changed the mindset and focused on a new opponent," commented Brown. "It came down to the formula where the team that was more aggressive at the end was rewarded for our aggressiveness."

Lemons led the offense with 12 kills while Nelson and Hynes both tallied 10. Defensively, Jessica Spierenburg and Hynes both totaled five blocks while Wu put up another double-digit dig performance with 12. 

The Violets return to action next weekend when they compete at the Ithaca College Invitational on Friday and Saturday, September 19-20. NYU will face host Ithaca in the first match on Friday at 6:30pm.