POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. – The nationally ranked No. 9 Monroe College – Bronx women's volleyball team had an impressive afternoon in a dual match at Falcon Hall Gymnasium on Saturday, August 26. After falling behind two sets to none in the battle of nationally ranked teams with No. 7 Finger Lakes Community College, the Express won the next two games to force the fifth and deciding set, but then fell short. After that strong effort against the Lakers, Monroe – Bronx earned a convincing victory in straight sets over Hudson Valley Community College to bump its overall record to 5-1.
 
"We are excited for the progress we made," sophomore outside hitter Lesly Almonte said. "The loss against Finger Lakes was a great learning experience for us. We showed what we can do during the victory against Hudson Valley."
 
In the hard-fought loss to Finger Lakes (2-0), set scores were 25-14, 25-18, 22-25, 19-25, and 15-4. The Express were led by sophomore outside hitter Lisanel Rodriguez who had a double-double with 10 kills and just as many digs, scored three service aces, and had a block. Classmate Luisanni Rodriguez generated five kills, a team-high 20 assists, eight digs, a block, and a service ace. Rookie middle blocker Nisa Llanos scored a career-high seven kills and had a block, while sophomore libero Valery Nunez anchored the defense with 15 digs. 
 
Finger Lakes jumped out to an early 7-0 lead in the opening set to earn the wire-to-wire victory to go up 1-0 in the contest. The Lakers never trailed at any point in the second set, but Monroe kept it close throughout the frame. It would not be enough as Finger Lakes was able to extend its lead in the match to 2-0.
 
Things looked grim for the Express in the third set as they fell behind by a score of 10-4 and were already trailing in the match, two sets to none. However, Monroe dug deep and got back into the set by scoring five unanswered points, highlighted by back-to-back kills from Llanos and Luisanni Rodriguez, and then a service ace from sophomore outside hitter Selena Mitchell to pull Monroe to within a point. 
 
After the Lakers inflated its benefit to four, the Express went on another 5-0 run, highlighted by a kill courtesy of sophomore outside hitter Haley Castaneda, to give Monroe its first lead of the afternoon at 14-13. Finger Lakes was able to tie it up, but the Express countered with a 5-2 run that was sparked by a successful attack from Lisanle Rodriguez and a pair of kills by Mitchell to give Monroe – Bronx a 19-16 advantage. The Lakers answered right back with five unanswered points to jump ahead by two. The Express countered with five straight points of their own, highlighted by a kill each courtesy of Almonte, classmate Xing Stewart-Greer, and llanos to earn the Blue and Gold a set-point opportunity at 24-21.
 
Finger Lakes scored the next point, but Lisanel Rodriguez took a setup by Luisanni Rodriguez and then slammed the ball on the floor through the Lakers' defense for the kill which clinched the victory in the third set to keep Monroe alive.
 
In the fourth set, the Express once again fell behind early but Llanos slammed home two kills to propel Monroe to six straight points to take an 8-5 benefit. With the game tied at eight, Monroe – Bronx took control by going on a 7-0 run, sparked by three service aces from Lisanel Rodriguez and a kill each by Luisanni Rodriguez and Llanos. The Express led for the remainder of the fourth set as an attack error by Finger Lakes clinched Monroe's second consecutive set-victory and forced a fifth and deciding game.
 
Unfortunately for the Express, Finger Lakes regained the momentum by starting off the winner-take-all frame with a 5-1 run on its way to securing the hard-fought match-victory.
 
For Monroe, Rookie defensive specialist Yasmel Molina produced six digs. Mitchell tallied four kills and three aces. Stewart-Greer had a solid match with two kills, just as many blocks, and three digs. Sophomore outside hitter Laura Pinales generated five assists, two service aces, three digs, and a block. First-year middle blocker Chelsea Nolasco slammed home a kill, tallied three digs, and had a block. Almonte recorded three kills, two service service aces, a duo of digs, and a block, while Castaneda added an assist and a service ace. 
 
In Monroe's victory over Hudson Valley (0-2), set scores were 25-15, 25-20, and 25-12. Luisanni Rodriguez generated five kills with a hitting percentage of .833, a match-high 16 assists, five service aces, and four digs. First-year middle blocker Maria Melendez had a solid attack attack for Monroe with three kills. Lisanel Rodriguez produced six kills, five digs, three service aces, and an assist, while Molina had nine digs and a pair of assists. Llanos added three kills, two blocks, and an assist. Mitchell produced four kills, three digs, one service ace, and an assist. Nunez added five service aces and seven digs.
 
The Express jumped out to a 10-1 advantage in the opening set and never looked back on their way to a 25-15 victory to go up 1-0 in the match.
 
In the second set, Monroe fell behind, 8-5, but scored four straight points to jump out in front, 9-8. The Vikings scored the next two points to go back in front, 10-9. However, the Express turned the tide by rifling off nine straight points, highlighted by five service aces from Nunez, to take a commanding 18-10 hold. The opposition chipped away and narrowed its deficit to 23-20, but Mitchell and Melendez helped Monroe finish the game off with back-to-back kills to put the Bronx Express up 2-0 in the match.
 
Monroe led from wire-to-wire in the third set. In fact, they finished the match on a 9-0 run, capped off by a kill from rookie outside hitter Shirley Garo which clinched the Blue and Gold's fifth win of the season.
 
For the Express, Castaneda generated a kill, five digs, and a pair of service aces. Pinales scored an ace and tallied five digs. Almonte had two kills and just as many digs. Nolasco recorded a kill and a dig, while Stewart-Greer added a kill of her own.
 
Monroe – Bronx will battle NCAA Division III's Brooklyn College in a scrimmage match, at West Quad Gymnasium, on Thursday, August 31. First serve is set for 3:00 p.m.

ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 31 teams competing across nine sports. There are 21 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's and women's rugby, the Monroe College marching band, and the newly added esports and men's volleyball programs, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Express, please visit us at www.MonroeExpress.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe Express), Twitter/X (@MonroeExpress), Instagram (@MonroeExpress), and Threads (@MonroeExpress).