September 6, 2006

Box Score

BROOKLYN, NY - New Jersey Institute of Technology scored the first three points of the match and held its own in the first game of its women's volleyball match at Long Island University, but the Blackbirds had too much firepower and defeated NJIT, 3-0, Wednesday night.

NJIT, in its first year competing at the Division I level, lost the first game, 25-30, before succumbing, 14-30 and 18-30 in the next two games against LIU, a program that advanced to the second round of last year's NCAA Division I postseason tournament.

The win lifts LIU to a 3-4, a deceptive mark, considering the fact that its last three losses came to nationally-ranked opponents. NJIT, which was 2-1 in last weekend's tournament at American University, falls to 2-4 on the season.

Freshman Kasha Hornstein continued to be a revelation for the Highlanders, posting a strong .375 attack percentage, with 10 kills and only one error in 24 attempts against the Blackbirds. Another freshman, Sabrina Baby, led NJIT with 12 digs.

Martina Wagner (23 kills) was one of three Blackbirds with double-figure kill totals. Jasmine Perez had 15 digs, while Svetlana Simic posted 11 kills and 11 digs. Toni Perhat had 5 aces for LIU.

The Highlanders will play in the Columbia tournament Friday and Saturday. They will face host Columbia on Friday at 7 pm. NJIT will face Hofstra and Hartford on Saturday.