PISCATAWAY, N.J. – The Rutgers volleyball season heads into the final stretch of the 2025 season with the final three games of the season at home, beginning with the series finale against No. 19 Minnesota on Sunday at Jersey Mike's Arena. The Scarlet Knights and Golden Gophers will serve up action at 4:30 p.m. in front of the BTN cameras with Jason Knapp and Anna Connelly on the call.
- Lily Bolen, Zora Hardison and Lexi Visintine will be honored prior to the match - Bolen for 1,000 career assists, Hardison for becoming the rally-era career & season leader in solo blocks and Visintine for becoming the rally-era season leader in aces.
- Rutgers will be celebrating Black Excellence with a Black Excellence t-shirt giveaway while supplies last, featuring words selected by the members of the team to represent the impact of Black Culture while honoring the history, pride and strength rooted in Black History.
- The Scarlet Divas, RU's first all-Black majorette dance team, will perform between sets two and three.
- Post-Match autographs on the concourse.
- Rutgers is at home to close out the 2025 campaign with a trio of home games featuring #19 Minnesota, Oregon and Washington. The Scarlet Knights close out the season series with the Golden Gophers after a 25-22, 25-13, 29-27 setback in Minneapolis back on Sept. 28. The Ducks and Huskies, meanwhile, make their first trek out to New Jersey after Rutgers played each squad on the West Coast last season in their first year in the league.
- The Scarlet Knights are coming off a three-game road swing, which included meeting up with #17 Indiana, #17 USC and RV UCLA, the only squad to hand #1 Nebraska a set loss this year in Big Ten action. Prior to the previous road swing, RU played to five sets in a pair of home matches against Michigan, a team receiving votes, and Ohio State.
- Rutgers continues to lead the conference in aces per set in averaging 1.81 per frame to rank 30th nationally in the category. RU has served up a total of 183 aces this season. Lexi Visintine continues to lead RU at the line and enters the week at fourth in the Big Ten with 43. Visintine became RU's rally-era season on Nov. 1 at Michigan State. Additionally, the senior outside has been leading the way on the attack with double-figure kills in four of the last seven matches, including a career-high 19 kills in back-to-back contests with Michigan and Ohio State two weeks ago. She needs just two aces for her 100th career.
- Aspen Maxwell, who has picked up two all-tournament nods this nonconference season, including being named the Sacred Heart Invite MVP, is eighth in the league in total points (412.0) and 15th in kills per set (3.43). Her 3.43 kills per frame ranks is at the top of the rally-era career leaders list.
- Lily Bolen is adding 9.70 assists per frame and is seventh among Big Ten setters in the category. She has collected 10 double-doubles this season in matches, including the last four games - UCLA (27a, 10d), USC (20a, 10d), OSU (55a, 12d) and Michigan (50a, 10d). Bolen also surpassed the 1,000-career assist mark back on Oct. 26 at Iowa and is nearing the 1,000-season assist mark.
- Zora Hardison leads RU with the stops at the net with 102 total blocks, including 27 solo stops. She is the Rutgers rally-era career and season leader in solo blocks. She surpassed the 200-career total block total in early October.
- Alleigh Dutton has led RU in digs in all but four matches to date and averages 3.10 per set. At Iowa back on Oct. 26, Dutton tied her career high for a third time this year with 17 digs and also added a career-high eight helpers.
- Minnesota comes to Jersey Mike's Arena at 19-8 overall and 9-7 in conference action and ranked at #19 in the latest AVCA Top 25 Poll. The Golden Gophers have won two straight with a sweep of #24 Penn State and a five-set battle at Iowa last week.
- On the attack, Julia Hanson is logging 4.12 k/s, ranking fourth in the Big Ten, while Stella Swenson directs the offense to the tune of 9.76 a/s, placing her sixth among the league's setters. At the line, both Swenson and Georgia Lee have amassed 27 aces with Hanson adding another 25.
- At the net, the Gophers will look to Lourdes Myers, who has racked up 207 total stops and averages 1.14 per frame to check in seventh in the conference. Additionally, McKenna Garr adds 3.31 d/s.
- ALL-TIME CAREER WATCH
- Zora Hardison needs seven more solo blocks to move into a tie for ninth on the all-time block solo leaders list, joining Addie Thiry (2001-04) and Margaret Puccio (1985-87). Hardison currently has 47 career solo blocks.
- RALLY-ERA CAREER WATCH
- Zora Hardison is the rally-era career leader in solo blocks with 45.
- Hardison needs 24 more total blocks to move up into seventh past Alex Jones (2009-12). Hardison currently has 227 career total blocks.
- Hardison needs four more block assists to move onto the top 10 list and into a tie with Stasa Miljevic (2017-19). She also needs 16 more to move into ninth place past Beka Kojadinovic (2017-21). Hardison currently has 186 career block assists.
- Lexi Visintine needs two more aces to not only move into second past Inna Balyko (2018-21), but will also become only the second Scarlet Knight of the rally era with 100 or more career aces. Additionally, Visintine needs nine more to take over the top spot from Beka Kojadinovic (2017-21). Visintine currently has 98 career aces
- Lily Bolen needs 22 more assists to move into fourth, passing Megan Sharkey (2016-17). Bolen currently has 1,263 career assists. Bolen was the seventh Scarlet Knight of the rally era to collect 1,000 or more helpers in a career.
- Bolen is also three aces away from moving into a tie for ninth alongside Hannah Curtis (2008-11). Bolen currently has 65 career aces.
- Natalie Robinson needs two more solo blocks to move up to sixth and pass Inna Balyko (2018-21) and six more to surpass Alex Jones (2009-12) for fifth place on the list. Robinson currently has 25 career solo blocks.
- Robinson also needs 27 more total blocks to join the top 10 and move into a tie for 10th with Beka Kojadinovic (2017-21).
- ALL-TIME SEASON WATCH
- Lexi Visintine needs eight more aces to join the all-time top 10, moving into a tie with Kerry Cody (1988). Visintine currently has 43 season aces.
- Zora Hardison needs three more solo blocks to move into a tie with Margaret Puccio (1986) for ninth on the all-time list.
- Hardison also needs 16 more total blocks to join the all-time top 10 list and move into a tie with Shealyn McNamara (2021).
- RALLY-ERA SEASON WATCH
- Lexi Visintine's 43 aces on the year are the most by a Scarlet Knight in the rally era.
- Zora Hardison's 27 solo blocks on the year are the most by a Scarlet Knight in the rally era.
- Hardison needs two more total blocks to move into seventh past Kristina Grkovic (2022) and four to move into a tie for sixth with Megan Vrnon (2022). Hardison currently has 102 total blocks on the year.
- Hardison needs 14 more block assists to move into the top 10 and into a tie with Inna Balyko (2018). Hardison currently has 75 season block assists.
- Lily Bolen needs 17 more assists to surpass Stephanie Zielinski (2010) for fourth. Additionally, the sophomore setter is 20 helpers away from becoming the fourth Scarlet Knight of the rally era to collect 1,000 assists in a season. Bolen currently has 980 assists.
- Bolen is two aces shy of moving past teammate Lexi Visintine's 2024 mark for third. Bolen currently has 36 season aces.
- Alleigh Dutton needs 44 more digs to move into a tie for 10th with Stephanie Zielinski (2012). Dutton currently has 307 season digs.
- Aspen Maxwell has racked up 412.0 points behind 346 kills and 73 blocks to rank fifth. She needs 2.5 more points to move into fourth past All-Big Ten selection Alissa Kinkela (2023) and 7.0 points to surpass Caitlin Saxton (2009) for third.
- Maxwell is also four aces away from joining the top 10 list and moving into a tie for 10th with Bolen's mark of 31 served up last season.
- Imani Howell is five solo blocks away from joining the top 10 list and into a tie with Natalie Robinson's 12 solo blocks from both this season and last season.
- In Caitlin Schweihofer's first season, played in the spring of 2021 due to COVID-19, the Scarlet Knights tripled their conference win total en route to capturing numerous program firsts. Among the team's firsts were its first-ever All-Big Ten honoree and Big Ten series sweeps. The Scarlet Knights won their first-ever Big Ten home opener, earned victories over Indiana and Michigan State for the first time in history, captured two series sweeps against Maryland and Michigan State, picked up set victories against No. 4 Nebraska and No. 10 Purdue and pushed No. 19 Ohio State to five sets and match point. RU established new team, season and match records for aces and reset program Big Ten game bests in kills, attempts, attack percentage and assists, as well as individual conference superlatives in attack percentage, assists and digs.
- Returning to fall ball for the 2021 season, only three and a half months after the conclusion of the Big Ten-only 2020 season, Rutgers continued to make strides, going 8-3 for its best nonconference record since 2012. During the season, the Scarlet Knights battled eight Top 25 teams during Big Ten play, a conference that sent eight teams to the NCAA Tournament, including the year's national champion. Rutgers captured set wins over No. 8 Purdue and No. 15 Penn State and took Illinois to five sets in front of a national audience on BTN. Inna Balyko wrapped up her career fifth all-time in assists and ninth all-time in block assists, while Kamila Cieslik became the rally era leader in matches played (132) and Beka Kojadinovic concluded her career as the rally era leader in aces.
- More success continued in 2022 as the Scarlet Knights opened the year at 3-0 for the first time since 1998 and battled eight Top 25 teams during Big Ten play and eight teams that advanced to the 2022 NCAA Tournament. During the nonconference schedule, four Scarlet Knights were named to All-Tournament squads, while Rutgers had 11 entries altogether among the rally-era season leaders list.
- Another step up the ladder occurred in 2023 as the Scarlet Knights earned their first-ever All-Big Ten attacker, captured their first-ever top 25 victory, collected the most overall wins and best nonconference record since 2012, improved set wins by 45% over the previous season and set a school record in attendance. RU placed 12 entries into the rally-era individual season top 10 records and 13 entries into the rally-era team top 10 records while collecting the most sets played, kills, assists, assists per set, digs and solo blocks by a team in conference play since joining the Big Ten in 2014.
- Last season, a youthful Scarlet Knight squad continued to rewrite the Rutgers record book, putting up several notable career and season numbers as the Big Ten expanded to the West Coast. On the attack, Alissa Kinkela, the squad's first-ever All-Big Ten attacker from 2023 and an Australian Olympic hopeful, cracked the top 10 all-time in career kills, the second most rally-era career kills and the third most rally-era career kills per set. Following the season, Kinkela signed to play professionally in South Korea. In addition to Kinkela's mark in the record book, Rutgers put nine entries into the rally-era individual season top 10 records, with a new benchmark set for blocks in a rally-era season from rookie Natalie Robinson. Additionally, Robinson leads RU's career blocks per set category after only one season "On The Banks". At the same time, junior Lexi Visintine was just two aces shy of setting a new season standard in the category.
- Rutgers volleyball closes out the season next week with Oregon and Washington.
- The Scarlet Knights host the Ducks on Wednesday, November 26 at 4 p.m. at Jersey Mike's Arena. Click here to purchase tickets.
- RU takes on the Huskies on Friday, November 28 at 1 p.m. at the College Avenue Gym on Senior Day. Admission is free.
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