MAHWAH, N.J. (October 12, 2017) – The Rutgers University-Newark women's volleyball team continued a tough stretch of matches tonight, dropping a road New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) contest against Ramapo College, 3-1. The hosts earned the win by set scores of 25-13, 25-18, 23-25, and 25-15. The Scarlet Raiders are now 6-11 (1-5 NJAC) while the Roadrunners improve to 15-6 (5-1 NJAC).

R-N was led by the duo of senior Morgan Schweitzer and junior Cassie Luken. Schweitzer recorded 10 kills and eight digs while Luken added 10 kills and seven digs. Rookie Karly Gregoire contributed a double-double with 21 assists and 11 digs. Senior Sue Riley racked up a team-best 21 digs.

Early in the first set, the two teams battled back-and-forth while exchanging the lead three times and recording three ties. Ramapo would eventually gain the upper hand, extending a meager 13-10 edge to 22-11 with a dominating stretch of play. The hosts would close out the period 25-13.

The beginning of the second stanza was a tale of two runs as the Scarlet Raiders started hot, rattling off five consecutive points, punctuated by a spike from Schweitzer. Still, the Roadrunners rallied back, winning the next nine points to gain an advantage they would not relinquish. While the visitors were as close as 16-13, Ramapo eventually took a 2-0 lead in the match with a 25-18 victory.

R-N carried its early momentum from the previous set into the third as the squads racked up five ties and five lead changes before the visitors earned the lead. Trailing 7-6, the Scarlet Raiders won five consecutive points including a pair of kills by Luken. Although the Roadrunners were able to close within one point on multiple occasions, Rutgers-Newark never conceded its advantage. Leading 13-12, the visitors took another five points in a row, featuring a kill from freshman Samantha Kemmerer and an ace by Riley that extended the lead to 18-13. Ramapo made one more rally, behind 23-18 but a spike from sophomore Comfort Akinbo stopped the bleeding and the Scarlet Raiders took a 25-23 win to cut their deficit to 2-1.

In the fourth set, the Roadrunners jumped out to a 9-5 lead. Another spike by Akinbo cut the deficit to 9-6 but that was as close as the visitors would get. Ramapo continued to expand its advantage, leading by as many as 12 before a pair of kills from Schweitzer sandwiched a 5-0 spurt for Rutgers-Newark. Still, the hosts would go on to close out the stanza 25-15 and the match 3-1.

The Scarlet Raiders have a quick turnaround as they host Mount Saint Vincent tomorrow night in The Golden Dome for a 7 p.m. match.