BROOKLYN HEIGHTS, NY—The NJIT women's volleyball team notched its first win of the 2018 season with a 3-1 win over Delaware State on day two at the Terrier Invitational hosted by St. Francis Brooklyn at the Genovesi Center.

NJIT (1-4) jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, taking the first two sets, 25-22 and 25-14.  Delaware State (0-6) held on for a 25-21 victory in the third frame, forcing a fourth set.  In a tight fourth set, the Highlanders scored the final three points to secure the 25-23 victory.

Freshman Makayla Greenfield combined for a career-best 16 kills, leading the Highlander offense.  Freshman Udo Nwosu and senior Emily Krachenfels each combined for 11 kills.  Greenfield finished the match with a .289 hitting percentage followed by Nwosu at .286.  Senior Jovana Baosic just missed notching double-digit kills, adding nine for the Highlanders.

Junior setter Liz Benson posted a double-double, tallying a match-high 46 assists while, adding 14 digs. 

Defensively, NJIT's senior libero Adriana Nieto combined for a match-best 31 digs followed by Benson (14) and Alahna Diaz (12).  Nieto added six assists.

In front of the net, freshman middle blocker Marina Markaki posted nine total blocks (two solo, seven assists) to pace the Highlanders.  Nwosu added three block assists.

Delaware State was led Sydeny Armbrister and Devin Ruble, who notched 12 and 10 kills respectively.  Setter Milexa piled up 30 assists and five digs while Leimaluhia Taula notched 23 digs followed by Nia Scott (13) and Mayah Ngundam (10).

NJIT opened up the first set with an early 11-4 run, capped by six consecutive points, resulting in a Delaware State timeout.  The Highlanders held a comfortable lead through the mid-teens but the Hornets rallied back and went on a 5-1 spurt, pulling within two of the Highlanders, 20-18.  After a timeout by NJIT, the Highlanders used a 5-2 run to close out the set, 25-22.

In the second set, the Highlanders hit an impressive .344, combining for 14 kills on 32 swings with just three errors.  NJIT, which carried its momentum to the second set, scored the first four points of the set and extended its lead to 19-12.  NJIT scored the last six-out-of-eight points in the set for a 25-14 victory.

In a tight third frame, the set saw eight ties and three lead changes, the final tie coming at 19-all after a kill by Liz Benson.  After a timeout by the Hornets, Delaware State used a 6-2 run to secure a 25-21 victory and force a fourth set.

The fourth set went back-and-forth with neither team leading by more than four through the mid-teens.  Tied at 19-all, the Hornets scored three straight points for a 22-19 advantage, resulting in a Highlander timeout.  NJIT answered with three straight of their own, knotting the set at 22 after block assists by Nwosu and Markaki.  After a kill by Delaware State's Ruble, the Highlanders scored three straight points, capped by back-to-back kills by Nwosu for a 25-23 victory.

NJIT will wrap up the Terrier Classic against Bucknell at 4:30pm.  In the first meeting this season, Bucknell swept the Highlanders in straight sets.