NEWARK, N.J. (March 2, 2019) – The Rutgers University-Newark men's volleyball team hosted a tri-match with Continental Volleyball Conference (CVC) opponent Marymount University and non-conference foe Hunter College.

The Scarlet Raiders won both matches by 3-1 scores defeating the Saints 25-22, 25-19, 15-25, 25-22 and the Hawks 25-13, 21-25, 25-23, 25-19 to improve to 10-3 (6-1 CVC). Marymount lost both of its matches to fall to 7-10 (5-3 CVC) while Hunter split to end the day at 10-4.

R-N returns to league action on Tuesday night when they head to Ramapo for a 7:30 p.m. match.

Rutgers-Newark 3, Marymount 1
In the first set, the Raiders opened up an early 4-1 lead and would maintain that edge, stretching it to 14-10. Sophomore Kyle Loesner and freshman Arvind Kumar each had two kills during that run while rookie Elan Dorkhman added one.

Still, the visitors fought back and evened the score at 14-14 with a quick 4-0 surge. From there, the teams exchanged the lead four times as the squads battled for control.

Trailing 18-17, it was Newark who went on a pivotal 7-2 spurt. Three different Scarlet Raiders recorded winners while senior Arnan Romua added an ace and the hosts claimed a 24-20 advantage.
Marymount managed to halve that deficit but Loesner emphatically ended the game with a spike.

The second set saw the Saints race out to a 9-4 lead. However, the R-N rallied right back, winning six of the next seven points to tie the stanza up at 10-10. Kumar added another two kills and Romua capped the surge with a service ace.

Eventually, the home side took the lead and widened the gap to 19-14 behind winners from four different players and two more aces. Although the Saints were able to get within 20-18, the Raiders closed out the set on a 5-1 run that was highlighted by a Kumar ace to make it 2-0.

Marymount was in control for the majority of the third, leading by three or four most of the early going. Still, winners from Kumar and sophomore David Mrowko helped pull the hosts within one at 14-13. Unfortunately, the visitors took the set with a dominant 11-2 surge.

The Saints looked to carry that momentum into the fourth and took an early 7-3 lead. However, Rutgers-Newark flipped the set on its head by winning 10 of the next 13 points. Kumar featured heavily with three more kills as the Raiders claimed a 13-10 edge.

R-N continued to try and pull away but Marymount kept things close. Trailing 17-13, the visitors evened the contest at 17-17. Then, after a pair of Kumar winners and a spike by Mrowko had the home squad back in front by four, the Saints closed to within one on two separate occasions. Still, a big winner by senior Brendon Frank helped provide the difference as the Scarlet Raiders took the set 25-22 and the match 3-1.

Kumar led the way with a big 15-kill performance in addition to five digs, two blocks, and an ace. Frank joined him in double-digits with 10 winners while Loesner added eight and three rejections. Dorkhman and junior Jake Connors shared team-high honors with six digs each. Romua and sophomore Travis Emenaker shared the setting duties with 20 and 18 assists, respectively.

Rutgers-Newark 3, Hunter 1
The Raiders pulled away from the Hawks early in the first set. A 6-6 deadlock became 10-6 quickly while an 11-8 lead turned into an insurmountable 20-11 advantage. Five different players produced winners led by three from Dorkhman. The hosts then closed out the game for a 25-13 win.

Hunter was in the lead for most of the second and held an 18-14 edge before a late rally by Newark. The Raiders reeled off four straight points, including kills by Kumar and freshman Danny Quay, to even the set at 18-18. This time though, it was the visitors who turned a 20-20 set into a 25-21 win to even the match at 1-1.

A pivotal third game featured 10 lead changes and ties as neither side could find a significant edge. The last deadlock of the set came at 14-14 and slowly R-N created a 20-16 advantage. While the Hawks got back within one point at 24-23, it would not be enough as a block by Kumar and sophomore Nicholas Arce-Cox ended the third in the home team's favor, 25-23.

The Scarlet Raiders raced out to an 8-1 lead in the fourth behind three blocks and three kills. Still, Hunter closed that gap to 10-7 and kept the set tight for the remainder of the competition.

In the end, leading 19-17, Rutgers-Newark was able to close out the game and the match on a 6-2 spurt that was punctuated by a big Quay spike from the middle block.

Dorkhman had a team-best 14 kills while Kumar picked up another 11 and Quay chipped in with nine. Loesner had an impressive match on the block with three solos and three assists in addition to eight winners. Kumar and Connors both reached double-figure digs with 14 and 13, respectively, while Romua and Emenaker orchestrated the offense with 25 and 20 assists, respectively.