PISCATAWAY, N.J. – The Rutgers volleyball team went 1-1 in their first appearance at the RAC on day one of the Rutgers 9/11 Memorial Tournament presented by the Bridgewater Marriott.
It was straight sets against in-state foe NJIT for the first victory in the arena in a 25-21, 25-23, 25-14 match.
In the nightcap against NC State, Rutgers rallied from a 2-0 deficit to force a fifth and deciding set. The Scarlet Knights, however, fell short in a 22-25, 25-27, 25-19, 25-23, 9-15 loss.
Rutgers 3, NJIT 1
- Fifth-year senior Beka Kojadinovic swung for 12 kills and senior Inna Balyko collected kills on five of her six attacks with on errors to hit .833 to lead the offense.
- Balyko also contributed 35 assists in the win and narrowly missed a double-double with nine digs.
- Sophomore Madyson Chitty posted a game-high 17 digs.
- Redshirt senior Shealyn McNamara continued to lead RU in stops at the next with six total blocks.
- Set 1 (25-21) | Anastasiia Maksimova helped Rutgers to the 1-0 lead behind five kills. The Scarlet Knights established a 19-11 lead, however, the fellow Jersey squad cut the deficit with a 7-1 run and trailed 20-18 late. A NJIT error and ace by Maksimova changed the momentum and kills by Kristina Grkovic and Kamila Cieslik helped close out the set.
- Set 2 (25-23) | Although it was the closest set of the morning, Rutgers never trailed. The Scarlet Knights led by as many as five, but late in the contest the visitors went on a 4-0 run were able to narrow the gap to a point at 22-21. Kojadinovic, on one of her four kills of the set, and Cieslik closed out the set with kills to give Rutgers the 2-0 lead.
- Set 3 (25-14) | The frame endured eight ties and three lead changes, but it was the largest margin of victory of the three sets for the Scarlet Knights. Locked up at 10-10, RU proceeded to outscore NJIT 10-2 which included a pair of 4-0 runs for a sizable 20-12 edge. Shealyn McNamara made five kills in the set while Inna Balyko served up a pair of aces.
- With her nine digs, Inna Balyko surpassed the 700 dig mark in her career and moved up a spot on the rally era leaders list into eighth place.
- Balyko's three block assists also pushed her past the 200 mark in her career and has her approaching the top 10 all-time list.
NC State 3, Rutgers 2
- Beka Kojadinovic was once again the leader of the attack leading a trio of Scarlet Knights with double-figure kills. She finished with a double-double with 16 kills and 13 digs. Both Shealyn McNamara and Anastasiia Maksimova posted 10 kills apiece.
- Inna Balyko also captured a double-double with 46 assists and 13 digs.
- Kamila Cieslik joined her teammates with 13 digs and was just shy of a double-double with nine kills along with a pair of service aces.
- Shealyn McNamara continued to be a fixture at the net with her nine blocks.
- Set 1 (22-25) | Shealyn McNamara tied the set up for a sixth time at 15-15 before the Wolfpack's Taylor Rowland swung to put the visitors up for good. Twice down the stretch the Scarlet Knights pulled within a point, including a Beka Kojadinovic kill that saw Rutgers trail 22-21, but NC State would remain in front.
- Set 2 (25-27) | The second set underwent another six ties before the Wolfpack went up 2-0. NC State rattled off four-straight points to open the frame and was leading 11-7 when the two teams began trading points. Eventually Rutgers used a 5-0 run, including a pair of blocks by Kojadinovic and McNamara, to take over the lead. Inna Balyko used a service ace to put Rutgers up 24-22 but the Wolfpack came back on a 5-1 run led by three kills from Melissa Evans to take the set.
- Set 3 (25-19) | Rutgers bounced back after the break holding NC State to its lowest hitting percentage of the night (.147). The Scarlet Knights led by as many as seven in the set as one of Kamila Cieslik's four kills from the frame established a 20-13 edge.
- Set 4 (25-23) | Although NC State hit a match-best .417 in the stanza, Rutgers held on to force a fifth and deciding set. A 6-0 burst found RU up 16-10, aided by a kill and pair of blocks from Kojadinovic. The Wolfpack pounced back with five unanswered a pulled to within a point at 19-18 but would not relent as one of Cieslik's swings gave the Scarlet Knights the victory.
- Set 5 (9-15) | NC State continued strong hitting in the deciding set pushing out a 5-1 lead Rutgers would not be able to overcome.
- Inna Balyko recorded her third double-double of the year and 24th of her career, while Beka Kojadinovic collected her second game of the year in double-figure kills and digs and 16th double-double of her career.
Gallery: (9-10-2021) Rutgers Volleyball vs. NC State
- In the other tournament contest, North Carolina State prevailed over Brown 3-0 (25-21, 25-18, 25-21).
- Rutgers closes out the tournament on Saturday hosting Brown at the RAC at 5 p.m.
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