This past week, the Ramapo men’s volleyball team was determined to make up for their devastating NJAC conference loss (3-1) to Kean University that curbed their seven-game win streak.
Ramapo proceeded to shut out St. Joseph’s Brooklyn (SJCBK) on Saturday by a score of 3-0. The game was dominated by Andrew Finnegan, who scored team-highs in kills with 15 and digs with 11. The Bears could not compete, with leading player Alex Helfant trailing at 12 kills and 10 digs.
SJCBK won the volley to serve the first game, but it did them little good. Ramapo streaked through the rallies with few interruptions until the score was 18-5. Three kills came from Finnegan, another three from Reece Kirchofer, two from Conor Charlow and one from Matt Rekuc.
The Bears managed a four-rally streak thanks to a kill from Frank Tello, an attack error by Simon Moeller, a service ace by Lordnel Saint-Jean and a bad set by Ramapo’s JoJo Meyer.
After that, however, Finnegan caught fire with two kills in a row. The team pulled together for a flashy ending, winning the last four rallies consecutively. Jack DiGirolamo closed the set 25-19 with a service ace.
Ramapo opened the scoring in the second game and the pattern continued. SJCBK could not extend a point-streak beyond five rallies. Ramapo received nine points from SJCBK’s errors alone, including Helfant’s attack error during the final rally that pushed the Roadrunners on top, 25-14.
The Roadrunners were determined to close in style, opening the set with a game-record of seven points in a row. The Bears refused to go down without a fight, however, and the last six rallies were a back-and-forth tug of war. Moeller went in for the final kill and the set closed 25-12, sealing the win for the Roadrunners. Ramapo’s Skyline Conference record moved to 11-2 while SJCBK’s dropped to 5-8.
Before Ramapo could begin another win streak, St. Joseph’s Long Island (SJLI) shut them out 3-0 in their most recent Skyline Conference match. Finnegan maintained his high level of play with 14 kills and five digs, surpassing players on both sides, but ultimately could not pull his team ahead.
The first set was neck-and-neck, but the Roadrunners’ offense was slacking and SJLI earned six points from errors. A kill from Tyler Anderson followed by another from Luke MacPherson sunk the set by a score of 19-25.
By the end of the second set, Ramapo’s defense had fallen apart as well. SJLI won the last six rallies consecutively, two of which came from service aces by MacPherson. It ended 14-25.
To their credit, Ramapo rallied during the third set. They had a hitting percentage of 25%, a game high. And yet, the set closed with a heartbreaking score of 25-22.
Overall, SJLI’s hitting percentage was over twice as high as Ramapo’s, .446 to .178. The end of the season is swiftly approaching, leaving little time for Ramapo to bounce back. The next match will be a home game against Sarah Lawrence College on Thursday at 7 p.m.
dbongiov@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of Ramapo Athletics
