FORT WAYNE, IN—Purdue Fort Wayne, ranked T-14^th in the AVCA Top 15 Coaches Poll, swept visiting NJIT, 3-0, in the 2019 season opener for both squads at Arnie Ball Court Friday evening.

Purdue Fort Wayne, coming off an 18-11 season in 2018, was led by top returnee Pelegrin Vargas, who was the only player to reach double-digits in kills with 14.  Vargas, an AVCA All-America honorable mention last season finished the match with a .458 hitting percentage.

Setter Michael Keegan combined for a match-high 40 assists to go along with six digs while Kolbie Knorr paced the match with 10 digs.

NJIT was led by Piotr Namiotko and Alvaro Gimeno, who combined for six kills apiece.  Gimeno, the reigning EIVA Rookie of the Year, paced the Highlanders with eight digs followed by Ricardo Whitaker with seven and six from Namiotko.

Whitaker added 20 assists for the visitors while Jens Feldhus, making his collegiate debut, notched four kills, two aces and two digs for the Highlanders.

Purdue Fort Wayne as a team hit .483 in the opening frame. The Mastodons and Highlanders were tied 8-8 before Purdue Fort Wayne opened up a four-point lead and forced an NJIT timeout. Five straight points later, the Mastodons took a 23-15 advantage before taking the set, 25-17. NJIT ended the first set with .000 hitting.

In the second frame, NJIT led by three, 14-11, but the Mastodons battled its way back throughout the set. The Mastodons regained the lead, 21-20, behind a kill from Vargas.
After back-and-forth through the early twenties, Purdue Fort Wayne's Tony Price combined for a service ace to end the second set, 26-24.

After an 11-11 tie in the third set, Purdue Fort Wayne went on a five-point run to open up a 16-11 lead. The Highlanders got no closer than four the rest of the way and ended the third set hitting .030 as Purdue Fort Wayne secured the 3-0 sweep with a 25-20 victory.

NJIT will return to action on Saturday at 7pm when the Highlanders visit Ball State.