GLEN ELLYN, Ill. – The #8-seed Monroe University – Bronx men's volleyball team dropped a competitive NJCAA Championship Consolation Match to #4-seed Union County College (N.J.), in straight sets, at the Physical Education Center Arena on Friday morning.
Set scores were 25-14, 27-25, and 25-17.
Monroe (17-15) will play in the seventh-place match on Saturday at 11 a.m. EDT/10 a.m. CDT against regional rival and #6-seed Borough of Manhattan Community College. The match will take place in the same location.
The Express matched the Owls point for point through the first eight rallies of the opening set, making it a 4-4 tie. However, Union County scored four unanswered points to jump out to an 8-4 benefit. The Express bounced back as a service error by Union ended the run. In fact, that began four straight points by the Blue and Gold, capped off by a service ace from
J'Adon George, to even it up at eight points apiece.
The Owls (23-8) countered with an 8-0 blitz to take a 16-8 hold.
Darren Lopez disrupted the opposition's momentum by slamming a kill for the Express. That changed the tide as it began a 3-0 run, capped by another successful attack from
Darren Lopez, to shrink Monroe's deficit to 16-11.
The game of runs continued as Union County won the next four rallies to extend its surplus to 20-11.
Fidel Ramirez ended Monroe's drought with a kill to pull the Express to within eight. That ignited a 3-0 run for the Express, concluded by a service ace from
Darren Lopez, to cut the Owls' lead to 20-14.
Union once again answered with a strong stretch of rallies, this time finishing the set with a 5-0 blitz. Sebastian Arias clinched the opening-game win with a service ace to give his team the 25-14 victory and a 1-0 lead in the match.
The Express got off to a strong start in the second game as a kill and back-to-back service aces from
Edwin Ortega sparked Monroe to an 8-3 advantage.
Darren Lopez continued the run with a kill to put the Express up by six. Union tilted the momentum its way by scoring three straight points to slice Monroe's lead in half.
Darren Lopez and
Rogelio Guarneros combined for a kill and an ace respectively to extend the Express' benefit to 11-6.
After the Owls cut the deficit to 11-8,
Darren Lopez slammed the ball through the opposing defense and on the floor to extend the Blue and Gold's advantage to 12-8. Later,
Frandie Martin slammed a kill to make it 15-11 in favor of Monroe. After the Express took a 16-12 surplus, Union County responded with a 5-2 run to cut Monroe's benefit to 18-17.
The Express got back on track as a kill by Martin and an ace from
Darren Lopez highlighted a 3-0 run to give the Blue and Gold more breathing room at 21-17. The Owls responded by winning three straight rallies to cut Monroe's lead to 21-20, forcing the Express to call a timeout.
After Union tied it at 21,
Damien Ramos and Martin combined for back-to-back kills to give the Express a 23-21 edge. Each team split the next two rallies to give Monroe a set-point opportunity at 24-22. However, back-to-back kills by Union's Brian Robinson evened the set at 24 points apiece. Monroe earned another set-point opportunity thanks to a service error by the Owls, making the score 25-24. Robertson scored another kill to tie it up and then Union scored the next point to take the lead. Arias slammed a kill to end the second set and complete the comeback victory for Union, 27-25, and a 2-0 advantage in the match.
Martin got the Express off to a good start in the third frame with a kill to put Monroe up 1-0. However, the Owls scored five of the next six points to take a 5-2 advantage. The Express played catch-up the rest of the way as Union County went on to win the third stanza, 25-17, and earn a berth in Saturday's fifth-place match.
Leading the way for the Express during the match was
Darren Lopez who notched nine kills, five digs, and a trio of service aces. Martin notched eight successful attacks and three defensive bumps.
Pedro Bello Lopez had a team-high six digs.
Johnnovan Reyes tallied 20 assists and a duo of defensive bumps. Ortega slammed two kills, tallied five digs, and scored a pair of aces.
Damien Ramos and
Fidel Ramirez each provided two kills, with the former adding a block and a dig.
Luis Vasquez earned a service victory, while Guarneros added two digs and an ace.
J'Adon George tallied a duo of defensive bumps and a service victory, while
David Garcia added a dig of his own.
For Union N.J., Mateo Jaramillo generated 12 kills (.409 hitting percentage), two digs, and a pair of blocks. Kavon Hayes led all players with 42 assists, while adding four digs. Arias and Christopher Del Rosario each slammed 10 kills, with the former having five digs with three aces and the latter tallying four defensive bumps. Jaden Guzman anchored the defense with 10 digs.
For updates regarding Monroe – Bronx's run in the NJCAA Championship Tournament, check out
www.MonroeExpress.com as well as our social media channels.
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, 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.
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