GREENSVILLE, N.C. (Aug. 26, 2017) – Rutgers volleyball claimed the 2017 East Carolina Invitational championship on Saturday with the first two victories of the season over William & Mary and the host Pirates. The Scarlet Knights opened the day with a 3-0 win over W&M (25-16, 25-19, 25-22) and clinched the tournament title by rebounding from a lost first set to win 3-1 in the evening over host ECU (19-25, 27-25, 25-17, 25-22).
 
Freshman opposite hitter Kamila Cieslik was named the ECU Invitational Most Valuable Player, while sophomore setter Megan Sharkey and freshman outside hitter Yana Kamshilina were selected to the All-Tournament Team.
 
"We're really excited," head coach CJ Werneke said. "We believe in our team, we believe in our talent, and what a difference a day makes. Not just physically, but mentally. We played with confidence, we played together, and it feels great to be 2-1 and a tournament champion."
 
Cieslik outdid herself one match after another, besting her collegiate debut from Friday with a 15-kill performance on .636 hitting, to go with three blocks in the straight-set victory over W&M. She contributed on 17 points in that win, good for 23 percent of the Scarlet Knights' score. She followed that up with 17 kills and her first collegiate double-double with 11 digs against ECU.
 
"We got our mental state where it should be," Cieslik said of rebounding from the season opening loss to Georgia State on Friday. "We came into today wanting to win and working together rather than being scattered. As for me, the setting and passing from my teammates really helped out. We couldn't have put it all together without a team effort."
 
The Scarlet Knights (2-1) were solid defensively, holding W&M (1-2) to a .022 hitting percentage in the straight-setter day game, and committing limited errors on the serve receive and blocking attempts. ECU (2-1) managed just a .189 attack clip in the title game.
 
Rutgers 3, William & Mary 0
Sophomore setter Megan Sharkey posted the Scarlet Knights' first double-double of the season with a career-high 30 assists and 11 digs while leading RU's .230 hitting clip. Sophomore middle blocker Stasa Miljevic and senior outside hitter Meme Fletcher contributed eight and seven kills, respectively, while sophomore middle blocker Jasmine Stackhouse paced a nine-block defensive effort with five total stops.
 
Set 1 saw Rutgers gain a 6-1 lead on six straight points, highlighted by Cieslik and Stackhouse combining on a block. Cieslik got her day rolling with a pair of kills for the 10-4 lead before capping a 4-0 run with a solo block to set the score at 18-8. Fletcher's three kills down the stretch helped seal the win, which was made official on a Sharkey kill to end a long rally.
 
In Set 2, an 8-4 run midway through the set had Rutgers up 16-13. The spurt was started by a kill from freshman outside Yana Kamshilina and stamped by two Cieslik kills, prompting W&M timeout. RU tacked on points thanks to a pair of Miljevic kills and Cieslik's bounce to put them up 21-17 in a crucial point in the set. Rutgers used a 4-2 run to end the set on Cieslik and Stackhouse kills.
 
Both sides traded 4-0 runs to a tie score of 6-6. The Scarlet Knights were the first to stake claim to momentum on a 4-1 run sparked by back-to-back kills off the hand of Cieslik for a 17-13 Rutgers lead. A four-point W&M run tied the game at 19-19, but Rutgers won five of the last seven points, led by Cieslik, her two blocks and two kills, including the final bounce for the first victory of 2017.
 
Rutgers 3, ECU 1
Kamshilina reached double-digit kills for the first time with 11, Sharkey continued to push her career-high in assists to 42, and Cieslik made a compelling case for Tournament MVP with her 17 kills and 11 digs. The Scarlet Knights rebounded from losing the first set 25-19 to win three straight and capture their first hardware of the season.
 
RU bounced back in Set 2 by holding advantages in hitting percentage, assists, digs and blocks. The Scarlet Knights started on a 5-1 run following Swackenberg's ace and a resounding Miljevic kill. The Pirates tied it at 8-8 after a 4-0 stint, then the match remained tight with 15 tie scores and eight lead changes throughout the set.
 
Cieslik bounced two balls to give RU an edge late, 22-19, but ECU battled back for the 25-24 lead on a 6-2 run. Rutgers survived set point and proceeded to win the next three to win the match on a Cieslik kill, a bounce from junior outside hitter Sahbria McLetchie and block assists from Miljevic and Sharkey.
 
Rutgers kept the ball in their court with a 4-0 start, which stretched to 12-3 on a 6-0 run with kills from three different Scarlet Knights. Later, Stackhouse halted a 3-0 ECU run with a kill and Miljevic threw down a block for the commanding 19-11 lead. Stackhouse closed out the set win with her fifth kill of the frame.
 
Cieslik sparked two separate 4-0 runs midway through the fourth set as Rutgers took a 20-13 lead. The Pirates showed late fight with a 6-1 spurt to cut the deficit to 22-20 before freshman opposite hitter Beka Kojadinovic and Kamshilina helped finish the match – and tournament championship – with kills.
 
Match Notes

• Rutgers posted a victory over William & Mary in their first-ever meeting, and improved to 3-0 against ECU all-time.
• Sharkey booked Rutgers' first double-double of the season with 30 assists and 11 digs against W&M. She also served up a career-best three aces. Cieslik was second in the double-double department in the nightcap with 17 kills and 11 digs.
• Sharkey's 42 assists (career high) against ECU were the most in a match since Anna Sudbury's 49 on Oct. 21, 2015.
• Miljevic's eight kills on W&M are a new career-high for the sophomore transfer from Florida State, and her five blocks against ECU tie a career best.
• Cieslik is averaging 4.33 kills/set with a .561 attack percentage through her first three collegiate games.
• Redshirt senior Brooke Enners made her season debut against ECU.

 
Follow Rutgers Volleyball on Twitter and Instagram (@RUvball) for all of the latest news and updates. The team is also on Facebook (www.facebook.com/RutgersVolleyball). For all Rutgers Athletics news follow us on Twitter(@RUAthletics), Instagram (@RUAthletics), Snapchat (@RUAthletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/RutgersAthletics).