PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers volleyball opened up its home slate on Saturday splitting its first two matches of the Rutgers Invitational.

The Scarlet Knights were victorious in their 2022 Jersey Mike's Arena debut with a sweep of FDU, 25-14, 25-22, 25-23, but the night game saw RU drop an 18-25, 17-25, 22-25 contest to FIU.

Rutgers 3, FDU 0
 

STANDOUT STATS

• Rutgers hit a season-best .356 with redshirt freshman Alissa Kinkela leading the way with a game-high 11 kills and sophomore Kristina Grkovic putting away 10 kills. Grkovic also served up a career-high five aces.
• Redshirt junior Lauren DeLo continued to be the go-to on the set coming up with 32 assists.
• In addition to being one of the top Scarlet Knights on the attack, Grkovic also led RU with five blocks. Sophomore Lucy Malone meanwhile came up with seven digs.

KEY MOMENTS

• Set 1 (25-14) | Alissa Kinkela swung for four kills and Kristina Grkovic added a trio of kills and a trio of block assists in RU's largest margin of victory in the match. An 8-2 run put the Scarlet Knights in control with a 12-7 advantage, however, FDU narrowed its gap to a point at 13-12 with a 5-1 run to follow. A Taylor Humphrey kill would get the end of the frame rolling for RU with the first of nine unanswered points to close. Humphrey would also add a pair of blocks during the spurt.
• Set 2 (25-22) | At the service line, Grkovic served four aces and Kinkela added another four kills. Rutgers raced out to a 7-1 lead and a solo block from Grkovic pushed the RU advantage to 15-9. FDU countered by going on a 9-2 run, including a string of five consecutive points, for its first lead at 18-17. The second frame was tied up twice down the stretch when a swing from Kinkela put the Scarlet Knights in front for good at 22-21. Lauren DeLo gave Rutgers the set point off an ace.
• Set 3 (25-23) | Grkovic hit .500 with points on eight of her swings and only one error. Additionally, five different Scarlet Knights served up aces in the final set. The set went through 11 ties and four lead changes before RU pushed ahead off a Grkovic kill, Madyson Chitty ace and Humphrey kill to lead 23-20. A kill from FDU's Tatijana Fucka saw the visitors down by a point at 24-23, but the sweep was completed off one of Megan Vernon's seven kills in the contest.
   

FIU 3, Rutgers 0
 

STANDOUT STATS

• Freshman Taylor Humphrey was one kill shy of collecting a double-double ending the late game with nine kills and a team-high 10 digs.
• Redshirt junior Lauren DeLo logged 31 assists.
• Junior Madyson Chitty and freshman Bekah Williams each notched a pair of service aces.
• Graduate student Megan Vernon led the defense with five total rejections, including four block assists.

KEY MOMENTS

• Set 1 (18-25) | Taylor Humphrey led RU in the opening set with five kills as Rutgers hit .333. FIU, however, swung .432 in the opening stanza win which included starting off the game with seven-straight points. Rutgers had a late spurt with a 5-0 run that narrowed the Scarlet Knight deficit down to 20-17. Humphrey had a pair of kills during the outburst while Kristina Grkovic added a solo block. FIU, however, would close by outscoring RU, 5-1.
• Set 2 (17-25)  | Rutgers was the first to double digits and led 10-7 when the Panthers poured out seven unanswered points to go ahead, 14-10. A Megan Vernon swing saw the Scarlet Knights trail 15-12, but FIU tacked on a 4-0 run and led by as many as eight.
• Set 3 (22-25) | The final set saw 11 ties and six lead changes. An ace from Alissa Kinkela put Rutgers ahead 18-15, but FIU responded with six straight for a 21-18 edge. Rutgers powered back with a 4-1 run capped by a Madyson Chitty ace to knot the score at 22-22. The Panthers, however, captured the next three points to take the match.

OTHER RUTGERS TOURNAMENT RESULTS

• In the tournament's other contests, Princeton picked up a 25-19, 25-18, 25-17 victory over FIU and a 25-19, 25-22, 25-21 win over FDU.

UP NEXT

• The Rutgers Volleyball Tournament concludes on Sunday with a pair of matches. FDU and FIU will square off beginning at 10 a.m. while tournament play wraps up with Rutgers hosting Princeton at 1 p.m.
• Both games will be streamed on Big Ten Plus with Pat Boyle and former Scarlet Knight Sam Graver on the call.
• Admission is free with parking registration.

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