Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

PURCHASE, NY – Rutgers University-Newark swept past Purchase College, 3-0, before falling to SUNYIT, 3-2, on the opening day of the Purchase Invitational.  The Scarlet Raiders notched a 25-12, 25-14, 25-16 win over the host Hawks before dropping their second 5-set match of the week, 26-24, 19-25, 23-25, 25-18, 15-8 to the Wildcats.
 
Freshman libero Sue Riley piled up 45 digs and rookie setter Nathalie Breining had 94 assists in the two contests to lead a solid overall performance by the Raiders (4-2) which included a career-high kill match by sophomore right side Hannah Riede against SUNYIT.
 
AGAINST PURCHASE, the Raiders hit a season's best .325 (34 kills, nine errors, 77 attacks) behind 31 assists by Breining who also go in on three Rutgers-Newark's four blocks.  Riley recorded a match-high 15 digs and added an ace.
 
Junior middle blocker Sharee Gordon and freshman outside hitter Karolina Kopacz registered 11 points apiece to pace the Raiders.  Gordon had a match-high nine kills, a solo block and two blocking assists while Kopacz had eight kills with no errors on 18 swings plus three of the team's six aces.  Freshman outside hitter Samantha Renfree chipped in seven kills.
 
Senior outside hitter Jenna Nardi posted seven kills, an ace and 11 digs for Purchase (1-9) while sophomore outside hitter Sarah Gabler tallied seven kills, a pair of aces and 13 digs.
 
SUNYIT was not the scheduled opponent for the Raiders in the second match.  Rutgers-Newark was slated to face Farmingdale State - the squad which handed the team its first loss of the season in five sets on Tuesday in The Golden Dome Arena.  But a schedule shuffle moved the Wildcats (3-5) to Saturday's agenda.
 
Riley posted a season-high 30 digs and Breining bumped up an incredible 63 assists in the marathon battle.  Breining also dumped in four kills on as many tries and came up with 21 digs.
 
Riede pounded down a career-high 12 kills, hitting .241 (12-5-29), and got in on two of the Raiders' four blocks.  Gordon totaled a dozen points on 10 kills and four blocking assists.  Kopacz and Renfree each contributed 11 kills.
 
Rutgers-Newark posted an incredible 113 digs with six Raiders in double digs in the category.  Sophomore Chrissy Campanelli and freshman Sydney Tuman notched 13 digs each.  Sophomore Kathy Hormaza made a dozen digs with Kopacz posting 10.
 
Freshman middle blocker Megan Will and sophomore right side Emma Larson led SUNYIT with 16 kills apiece.  Will added two solo blocks, four blocking assists and an ace for a match-high 21 points while Larson delivered three of the Wildcats' seven aces and came up with 18 digs.
 
After falling 26-24 in the opening game, the Raiders bounced back to take a 2-1 lead.  But SUNYIT pulled away in the final two sets as the young Rutgers-Newark team has now has fallen twice in as many 5-set decisions while sweep to 3-0 victories in its four wins.
 
Rutgers-Newark takes on Albertus Magnus at 1 p.m. and Farmingdale State at 3 today in the tournament.