KINGSTON, RI – The Rutgers volleyball team (5-3) opened play at the URI Invitational in Kingston, RI, with 3-0 victories over tournament host Rhode Island (32-30, 30-20, 31-29) and Harvard (30-22, 30-27, 30-20).

In the opening match of the URI Invitational, senior Dawn Christjaener (Huntington Beach, CA) led the Scarlet Knights with a match-high 18 kills while senior Stephanie Travioli (Arlington, TX) recorded 12 kills of her own and senior Abbey Martin (Topeka, KS) added a match-high 40 assists.

On the defensive side, junior Courtney Stout (San Marcos, CA) led all players with 10 digs, followed by sophomore Lora Yankauskas (Paramus, NJ) who tallied nine digs. Senior Addie Thiry (Louisville, KY) and junior Ashleigh Young (Albany, OR) recorded four block assists apiece, to lead the Scarlet Knights.

In RU’s second match of the day against Harvard, Christjaener recorded her third double-double of the season with a match-best 17 kills and 12 digs while Travioli chipped in with 14 kills and Yankauskas added 12. Yankauskas has continued to play strong, tallying double digit kills in eight straight matches and Martin once again led RU with 49 assists. The Scarlet Knights dominated the Crimson, recording a .426 team hitting percentage.

“It was a good team effort all the way around,” said head coach Ann Leonard-House. “We had good performances from Abbey and Dawn. Abbey made some good decisions and this was probably the highest hitting percentage we’ve had as a team since she became our setter. Dawn also had a big night and it’s been a while since she’s been in the double digits, so it’s good to see her on the right page.”

Rutgers finishes play at the Rhode Island Invitational on Sept. 18, when it takes on New Hampshire at 11:00 a.m.