BINGHAMTON, N.Y. – The nationally ranked No. 8 Monroe University – Bronx women's volleyball team opened the 2024 season with a thrilling come-from-behind victory in five sets over Broome Community College, at West Gymnasium, on Friday afternoon. Set scores were 25-27, 24-26, 25-12, 26-24, and 15-10.
 
The Express (1-0) dropped the first two sets but rallied to win the next three to snatch victory out of the jaws of defeat.

Leading the way for Monroe was freshman outside hitter Aleishka Diaz who tallied a double-double with 14 kills and 12 digs, while scoring seven service aces. Classmate Gabriela De La Rosa helped pace the Express with 12 kills and five digs. Second-year libero Yasmel Molina tied a match-high with 17 digs, while sophomore setter Serena Bueno produced a career-high 34 assists to go along with five digs. Rookie defensive specialist Julia Ramos made an impact with seven aces and 11 digs. Classmate Arielys Colon anchored the defense with 11 digs of her own.
 
The Express got off to a quick start in the opening set as a service ace by Bueno put the Blue and Gold up 4-0. Broome (1-1) countered with a 7-3 run to pull to within one. Monroe was able to earn more breathing room as an ace courtesy of sophomore middle blocker Chelsea Nolasco made the score 11-8. The Hornets answered with four unanswered points to jump out in front, 12-11. Later in the stanza, with Monroe down 17-14, De La Rosa got Monroe back on track with back-to-back kills to pull her team to within one. After Broome scored the next two points, Monroe countered with a 4-0 run to retake the advantage at 20-19. The home team took its turn in the back-and-forth set by scoring three of the next four points to regain the lead, 22-21. The Express took advantage of three consecutive errors by Broome to give them a set-point opportunity at 24-22. However, Broome stormed back by scoring five of the set's last six points to earn the come-from-behind win in the opening stanza, 27-25. 
 
In the second set, the Express fell behind by a score of 14-8. However, the Blue and Gold went on a 5-0 run, highlighted by two kills from Diaz and a service ace courtesy of Nolasco, to pull to within one. After Broome scored the next point, Diaz slammed home a kill to spark a 6-0 run to propel Monroe to a 19-15 benefit. The Hornets snatched the momentum right back by notching seven straight points to jump ahead, 22-19. Monroe continued to fight back as an ace from Diaz and a kill by De La Rosa contributed to four straight points for the Express to give them the lead once again at 23-22. However, Broome once again finished the set strong, this time closing it on a 4-1 run to earn another come-from-behind victory, 26-24, to put Monroe in a 2-0 hole in the match.
 
The Express fell behind, 2-0, in the third set. Down by two sets in the third frame and trailing 2-0 in the match made the situation very bleak for the Blue and Gold. However, Diaz continued her strong collegiate debut by notching back-to-back service aces to cap off a 3-0 Monroe run to put them up by one. Later, with the game evened up at four, Monroe took over the set by going on a 15-1 run to not only give the defending regional and district champions a commanding 19-5 benefit but provide the key stretch that turned the match around for the Express. During Monroe's match-altering blitz, Ramos nailed four service aces in a row, sophomore opposite hitter Princess Corona scored two aces of her own, and Diaz and De La Rosa each registered a kill. Later in the stanza, Diaz helped the Express finish off the set thanks to a kill and a service ace to close out a 25-12 victory for the Blue and Gold and pull them to within 2-1 in the match.
 
Despite staying alive with the win in the third stanza, Monroe dug themselves in deeper danger in the fourth game as they fell behind 21-18. The Express fought back as a kill by Diaz and sophomore middle blocker Nisa Llanos sparked three unanswered points for Monroe to tie it up at 21 points apiece. Unfortunately for the Express, Broome scored the next three points, capped off by a service ace from freshman setter Ha Tran, to give the Hornets a match-point opportunity at 24-21. Despite being down to their final point, the Express retained their composure as a kill by freshman defensive specialist Kaileex Batista kept Monroe alive by making it 24-22 in favor of the Hornets. Then, Monroe was able to take advantage of four straight errors by Broome to give them a miraculous comeback victory at 26-24 to even the match at two sets apiece and set up the fifth and deciding set. 
 
Monroe's strong comeback in the fourth stanza carried over into the fifth as the Blue and Gold jumped out to a commanding 10-2 hold. The key to the Express' strong start was three kills by De La Rosa, two service aces from Corona, and an ace plus a successful attack courtesy of Diaz. Broome chipped away and narrowed Monroe's advantage to 13-9. The Hornets could not get closer as they committed a service error to give the Express a match-point opportunity. Broome scored the next point but then they committed another service error to clinch the come-from-behind season-opening win for the Express in five sets.
 
For Monroe during the afternoon, Nolasco generated six kills, three aces, and a dig. Llanos chipped in with four kills and two blocks. Corona recorded four aces, just as many digs, and a kill. Batista had a strong match defensively with seven digs. 
 
For Broome, first-year middle blocker Amariah Argro led all players with 19 kills, while recording 16 digs, three service aces, and a block. Sophomore outside hitter Kate Spencer provided eight kills and 12 digs. Second-year libero Ayshah Almashni tied a match-high with 17 digs. Tran generated 31 assists, eight digs, and four service aces. 
 
It will be a quick turnaround for the Express as they will play a pair of matches on the campus of Finger Lakes Community College on Saturday. The first match will be a battle of nationally ranked teams as the No. 8 Express will take on the host No. 11 Lakers, at 10:00 a.m. Then, Monroe will battle Genesee Community College at 1:30 p.m. 
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE UNIVERSITY
The athletic program at Monroe University 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 University 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).