NEWARK, NJ—Springfield, the top-ranked team in the latest American Volleyball Association Division III poll, defeated NJIT, 3-1, Wednesday evening in the Fleisher Athletic Center.
Springfield is a nine-time Division III national champion, including 2012, 2013, and 2014, when the NCAA first sponsored a separate DIII national championship (previously, the NCAA men's volleyball championship encompassed teams from all three divisions; in 2012, the NCAA split the championships into Division I-II and Division III; prior to 2012, the Division III championship was sponsored by equipment manufacturer Molten).
The Pride raised its season record to 26-2 while the Highlanders, which concludes its non-conference portion of its schedule, drops its fourth straight, after it won six in a row between March 9 to March 18.
NJIT faces a pivotal final weekend when it returns to Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association play on April 14 and 15. The Highlanders will host Sacred Heart on Friday at 7 pm and then a 4 pm Saturday match against Harvard on Senior Day.
The Highlanders, who sit in fourth place heading into the final weekend, are one of four teams with a 6-6 EIVA mark (Sacred Heart, George Mason, Harvard and NJIT). Penn State sits in first with a 9-3 mark, followed by Saint Francis U (8-4) and Princeton (7-5).
NJIT posted a 3-1 win over Sacred Heart and dropped a 3-0 decision at Harvard when the Highlanders played the two on February 24 and 25, respectively, in the first leg of their home-and-home series.
The opening set went extra points, with Springfield scoring a 28-26 win. The Highlanders evened the match at 1-1 with a 25-22 victory in the second frame. The Pride won the third set convincingly, 25-14 and rallied to win the fourth set, 25-20, to earn the 3-1 victory.
The top hitters for Springfield were Sean Zuvich (19 kills, 6 errors, 34 attempts, .382 attack percentage) and Luis Vega (18 kils, 4 errors, 30 attempts, .467 attach percentage).
The only Highlander with double-digit kills was freshmen
Bailey Mundy (13).
Springfield setter Luis Garcia Rubio piled up a match-best 44 assists, distributing the ball to Vega and Zuvich, and sophomore
Cameron Tait led NJIT with 25 assists. NJIT's
Pat Howell combined for eight assists in two sets.
The Pride had eight service aces, paced by three from Vega and Kyle Jasuta, who combined for three kills and two digs. Libero Eli Irizarry Pares shared match-high honors with NJIT's
Chris Wise with eight kills.
In front of the net, Springfield's Jonathan Rodriguez led the match with five block assists while middle
Luke Allmond paced the Highlanders (1 solo, 2 assists).
Springfield's Vega had eight kills in the opening set to key the attack in the Pride's 28-26 win. The Highlanders were led by Mundy's four kills. The set produced 19 ties and seven lead changes, with neither team leading by more than one point. Tied at 24 all, the Pride used a 4-2 spurt to close out the match on a block assist by Zuvich and Rodriguez.
In the second set, the Highlanders jumped out to a quick 13-6 advantage as Springfield resulted in its second timeout of the set after a kill by Mundy. Late in the set, the Pride used a 5-0 run, sparked by a kill by Zuvich, cutting the Highlander deficit to two, 22-24, resulting in a Highlander timeout. The Highlanders evened the match at 1-1 on a service error for the Pride.
Springfield combined for a .414 hitting percentage and never trailed in the third frame, cruising to a 25-14 victory.
The fourth set seesawed back and forth until the visiting Pride scored four straight to pull ahead, 18-14, after an NJIT ball handling error. The Highlanders went on a rally of its own, cutting the deficit to two, 20-22, after four straight points, resulting in a Springfield timeout. The Pride scored two of the last three points of the frame and went on to win, 25-20.
