Final Stats

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (Sept. 16, 2016) -- The Rutgers women's volleyball team opened its home slate on Friday at the College Ave Gym. The Scarlet Knights suffered losses to Princeton and Seattle on its first day of the Rutgers Invitational.

GAME ONE
Rutgers dropped its home opener to Princeton by set scores of 25-23, 25-22 and 25-12.

Laruen Cloyd led the team with nine kills followed by Jillian Duffin with seven kills. Mikaela Matthews paced the squad with seven blocks while Cole Trimble matched her career-high with five blocks of her own.

Princeton was led by Cara Mattaliano's double-double with 12 kills and 13 digs.

Despite trailing to start the set, Rutgers rallied to tie the score, 11-11. Princeton jumped back into the lead, pushing to a 19-14 edge. The Scarlet Knights responded with a 6-1 run to knot the frame 20-20. Although the teams traded points across the final serves, the Tigers closed the set with a slim 25-23 win.

RU maintained its late set momentum to move to a 9-6 lead in the second stanza. The Scarlet Knights held onto its edge, 13-10, before the Tigers found a surge to claim the lead, 18-14. Rutgers kept the margin as close as three points, trailing 23-20 late in the frame. However, Princeton held off RU for a 25-22 victory en route to a 3-0 vwin in the match.

GAME TWO
Despite strong performances in the second and third sets, Rutgers was topped by Seattle by set scores of 25-17, 25-23 and 25-22.

RU was led by Cole Trimble and Mikaela Matthews with six kills each. Matthews also contributed a team-best four blocks.

Katarina Marinkovic paced SU with a match-high 10 kills, while Shae Harris added in 29 assists.

An early 6-0 run for the Scarlet Knights behind the serves of Meme Fletcher helped Rutgers pull ahead to a 9-6 edge. However, Seattle stumped the surge tying the score on three occasions before claiming the lead, 14-11. The Redhawks held on onto the edge for the remainder of the set to take a 1-0 lead in the contest.

Despite trailing 10-5 at the start of set two, RU returned from a timeout to outscore SU, 9-1, for a 14-11 lead. From there, a point-for-point battle ensued on the court. With five ties on the board, Rutgers held onto its edge until Seattle strung together three consecutive points for a 23-20 advantage. The Scarlet Knights responded with a kill from Trimble and block from the duo of Tiaja McKnight and Cloyd, but it was not enough to reclaim the lead.

After falling behind 6-1 to start the third set, Rutgers never let up to pull within one at 12-11. The Scarlet Knights continued to cut into the deficit as a block for the duo of Jillian Duffin and Jasmine Stackhouse knotted the count at 18-18. Although Seattle regained its edge, Rutgers tied the set, 22-22. However, it was not enough to keep the Scarlet Knights alive in the match as RU fell in the final stanza.

UP NEXT
The Scarlet Knights conclude the Rutgers Invitational with a matchup against in-state rival Seton Hall at 9:30 am on Saturday.

KNIGHT NOTES

• Rutgers played its first two matches at home after starting off the season with three consecutive road trips for a total of 10 matches away from the College Ave Gym.
• Cole Trimble tied her career-high with five blocks in the match against Princeton.
• Mikaela Matthews matched her season-high for the third time this season with seven blocks against Princeton.

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