Bulldogs Sweep NJIT, Win Fifth Straight at Home

SMITHFIELD, R.I- Riley James and Caroline Kennedy combined for twenty kills and six blocks as the Bryant volleyball team swept NJIT for their fifth straight home win. The Bulldogs improved to 3-2 in America East play halfway through the conference schedule.

Kennedy (10 K, 5 BA) and James (10 K, 2 SA, 1 BA) led all players with 12.5 points, while Mia Cergol had 38 assists and four aces. Alysa Wright tied for the match high with six blocks, moving into sole possession of fifth on Bryant's all-time Division I leaderboard.

Coach Garlacy's Comments: "We kept NJIT out of system with extremely tough serving tonight. Emma was very effective hitting .300 and Haley hit .700. Carol hit very well and combined with Alysa on nine blocks."

Bryant 3, NJIT 0 (25-14, 25-19, 25-22)

Records: BRY (14-9, 3-2 AE), NJIT (7-17, 0-5 AE)

How it Happened

Set 1: Three kills by Kennedy and two aces from Mia Cergol propelled the Bulldogs to a 9-0 run to start the match, forcing NJIT to burn an early timeout. The Highlanders made a couple of brief runs, but Bryant held serve to take the opener in dominating fashion. Kennedy finished the set with five kills on a .455 attack percentage.

Set 2: NJIT responded with a 4-0 run to start the second set before kills by James and Wright put Bryant on the board. The Bulldogs gradually narrowed the deficit, eventually tying the score at nine. The Highlanders responded with a run to go back up by three, but Bryant rallied back to take a 15-13 lead heading into the media timeout. Three consecutive kills helped the Bulldogs extend the lead, and they would go on to win the set by six.

Set 3: The final set was the most competitive, with the teams tying nine times and exchanging the lead twice. A 7-2 run by NJIT helped them to a three-point lead late in the set, but Bryant scored the final six points to turn a 22-19 deficit into a 25-22 set win and a 3-0 sweep. Wright had four kills in the final set, including the game-ender.

Bulldog Notes and Notables

• Alysa Wright's six blocks increase her career total to 307, moving her into fifth place on Bryant's all-time Division I leaderboard. She is on pace to become just the second player in the Div. I era to average over a block per set for her career.

• Riley James' ten kills and eleven digs were good for her fourth double-double of the season. She also recorded her seventh match with multiple aces, including her third in a row.

• Caroline Kennedy had her sixth match with double digit kills and double digit points. Her five blocks were one away from her season high.

• Bryant has recorded at least five aces in each of the last five matches. Mia Cergol had four of the team's seven tonight.

• The Bulldogs have now won five consecutive home matches, and have now won ten straight conference matches at home, dating to the beginning of last season.

What's next: The Bulldogs will make a quick trip to Albany for their second matchup with the Great Danes on Sunday. They will be back home for a non-conference meeting with Merrimack next Wednesday.