Union, N.J. (4/13/13) – The Kean University men's volleyball team advanced to the Skyline Championship game for the second year in a row as they topped New Jersey City University in straight sets on Saturday afternoon.
The Cougars, currently ranked 14th in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 15 poll, improve to 24-7 and run their win streak to 12.
Kean dominated in the first set, scoring 20 points before the Gothic Knights got to double-digits. The Cougars recorded 12 kills on 19 swings (.526) while holding NJCU to a negative attack (7-8-21). Kean also held 90% sideout mark on their way to a 25-11 set one win.
The second set played tight in the early going before Kean turned a five-all tie into a 10-6 advantage. The Cougars used block from sophomore Kyle Farley and Alex Barnhard as well as a kill from senior Steve Vahalla in the spurt. Kean never trailed from that point on, leading by as many as seven on their way to a 25-18 second set win.
The third set seemed to be in the hands of the Gothic Knights (19-16) who took an early lead and held on for much of the set. Trailing 20-16, the Cougars used a well placed timeout to score five straight points to regain the lead. Kean tied the match at 20-all with an attack error from NJCU. The Gothic Knights responded and pushed all the way to match point with a kill from sophomore Besmir Arslani (24-21). That would be the last point NJCU would score on the day as the Cougars rallied to tie the match at 24-all and used two straight aces from Vahalla to seal the win.
Vahalla (pictured left) finished with 16 kills off 24 attempts (.542) with three aces and three blocks. Barnhard recorded 34 assists while defensive specialists Tom Kemmerle and Michal Kucza combined for 16 digs.
For the Gothic Knights rookie Daque Wilcox tallied eight kills on 14 swings.
For the match, Kean held a .351 hitting percentage while the Gothic Knights were limited to .074.
The Cougars will face either #2 Sage or #3 Ramapo this evening in the Skyline Championship at 7 p.m.
