The NYU men’s volleyball team defeated both New Jersey City University and Hunter College on Sunday, March 23 in Jersey City, N.J.
NYU beat NJCU in four sets, dropping only the third set by 19-25 and winning the other sets with scores of 25-23, 25-17 and 27-25. The Violets recorded 60 kills, seven aces and four blocks. The team was led by Tisch freshman Chase Klein who tallied 14 kills, swinging .417, and 15.0 points in the first match. Klein was named United Volleyball Conference Rookie of the Week for his stellar performance throughout the day.
“It is a honor to be named freshman of the week,” Klein said. “I think the UVC is a super strong conference, and any time my name comes up as one of the top players it is very humbling.”
LS sophomore Phil LaPorte, LS freshman Will Kozloski and SCPS senior Nick Capriccio also made big contributions. LaPorte recorded eight kills and two aces. Kozloski and Capriccio went 10-1-1 and 9-4-2 (kills-aces-blocks), respectively.
The team’s win over NJCU was the first four-set victory since their first match of the season in January against York College.
NYU put on an even more impressive offensive display against New York City foe Hunter College. The Violets won in straight sets with scores of 25-14, 25-20 and 25-19. The Violets were again led by the performances of LaPorte and Klein with 13 and 11 kills, respectively.
Senior Captain Connor Mortland, who dished out 48 assists on the day, said he was pleased overall with his team’s performance for the day. He said they bounced back after a lazy start against NJCU.
“Yesterday, we came out a bit slow in the first match against New Jersey City University,” Mortland said. “We were lackadaisical and not making plays that we should have which is why we lost the third game. When we were down 23-19 in the fourth game, we showed a lot of resiliency by being able to come back and finish the match.”
Mortland said his team turned around the sloppy play and concentrated on their offence from the service line, which proved fruitful. Mortland added that the team had the one of the best serving matches yet.
Mortland said the victory against NYU’s city rival was well received.
“There is always a rivalry between teams in New York City,” Mortland said. “Beating Hunter was important from a Division III perspective, but there was also pride at stake considering they are one of our main rivals every year.”
After collecting two wins on Sunday, the Violets prepare to meet another in-city rival Baruch College on Thursday, and the UVC conference tournament in April.
A version of this article appeared in the Tuesday, March 25 print edition. Sean Billings is a staff writer. Email him at [email protected].
