JERSEY CITY, NJ — Sophomore outside hitter Chris Grunwald (St. James, NY) registered 15 kills, three service aces, three blocks, and a .591 hitting percentage to lead the SUNY New Paltz men’s volleyball team to their third straight victory with a 30-20, 30-19, 35-33 win over North East Collegiate Volleyball Association foe New Jersey City University this evening.
The Hawks improve to 5-2 overall and 3-2 in the NECVA while the Gothic Knights fall to 6-5 overall and 2-3 in the NECVA.
New Paltz upped their all-time record to 4-1 against New Jersey City and became the first team to win on the other teams’ home court.
The Hawks cruised to victories in the first two games before being pushed to the limit in the third game. New Paltz came with a point of losing the third game at 29-28, 30-29, and 31-30 but were able to garner the tying point on each of the three occasions. They finally took the lead at 33-32 before New Jersey City tied the score at 33-33. The Hawks scored the final two points and won the match on a failed block attempt by the Gothic Knights.
Junior outside hitters Mike LaRocco (Hauppauge, NY) and Chris Ganje (Halfmoon, NY) led a balanced offensive attack for New Paltz with 11 and eight kills, respectively. Sophomore setter Kevin Buggs (Tonawanda, NY) notched 47 assists.
New Jersey City’s freshman middle hitter Damon LaSalle (Clifton, NJ) posted nine kills, six blocks, and a .353 hitting percentage and sophomore outside hitter Edward Sosa (Newark, NJ) had eight kills and four blocks.
New Paltz returns to action on Thursday, February 12 when they travel to Brooklyn to play Medgar Evers at 7:00 p.m.
