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NEWARK, N.J. (October 31, 2016) – For the first time since 2006, Rutgers University-Newark women's volleyball is in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Championship Tournament. The sixth-seeded Scarlet Raiders will travel to third-seeded Montclair State University for the opening round of the league tournament Tuesday night at 7 p.m.
 
Rutgers-Newark will bring in an overall record 15-12 into Tuesday's match, and since falling to 6-7 overall, the Scarlet Raiders closed the 2016 regular season with victories in nine of their final 14 outings.
 
R-N locked up its first berth in the league tournament by way of three NJAC victories, traveling to William Paterson University and Rutgers University-Camden and bringing home sweeps, also topping rival New Jersey City University in The Golden Dome.
 
Rutgers-Newark has been led throughout the season by junior Karolina Kopacz. Kopacz leads the NJAC and is fifth in the nation in triple doubles with four, averaging 2.51 kills per set and compiling a .189 hitting percentage. The veteran also leads the team in assists with 4.38 per set, adding 38 service aces, 213 digs and 29 blocks to her line.
 
Senior Tabitha Davis has been playing extremely well down the stretch, and is now second on the Scarlet Raiders with 204 kills and a hitting percentage of .201. Sophomore Cassie Luken has been solid with 2.25 kills per set and 36 service aces, and junior Morgan Schweitzer has been coming on strong and now has 107 kills.
 
Junior Rebecca Ford and her 52 rejections pace the Newark blockers, with Davis (39), sophomore Nicole Polak (32), Luken (31) and Kopacz (29) performing admirably as well.
 
Junior Sue Riley leads the squad with 42 service aces and 446 digs, lifting 4.90 per set, with Luken (221), Kopacz (213) and senior Kathy Hormaza (181) all playing well on the defensive side of things. Hormaza – one of the team's two seniors – also has handed out 320 assists this year (3.52 per set) and has pocketed 23 aces.
 
Overall, the Newark defense has been solid throughout 2016, ranking third in the NJAC in digs per set (16.38) and opponent hitting percentage (.121).
 
R-N's Tuesday night opponent – Montclair State University – will provide a stiff test for the Scarlet Raider ladies as the Red Hawks topped Newark 3-0 back on September 22 in the Panzer Athletic Center. Luken paced Rutgers-Newark with eight kills and five digs in that match, with Kopacz notching 16 assists and nine digs and Riley going for 14 digs.
 
The winner of Tuesday night's match will take on second-seeded Stockton University in the Stockton Sports Center November 3 at 7 p.m. in the NJAC semifinals.
 
Fans unable to get to Montclair State University Tuesday night can follow the action live via links at the top of this page or at www.rutgersnewarkathletics.com.