College Volleyball
Marist College 3, Rider University 1
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Match
Amatulli 1,000th dig

LAWRENCEVILLE—The Rider University volleyball team took a set from Marist College but were unable to hold on as the Red Foxes clinched the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference regular season title with a 3-1 victory in Alumni Gymnasium on Sunday afternoon.

Marist (23-5, 15-3 MAAC) won 22-25, 25-20, 25-20, 25-12.

“It was a great volleyball match to watch,” said head coach Christopher Feliciano.  “It was hard fought.  The consistency we showed in the opening set, we needed to carry that over for the entire match.”

For Rider (17-15, 10-8 MAAC) Ashlee Amatulli (Menifee, Calif./Temecula Valley) celebrated her senior day with 26 assists and 12 digs, including career dig 1,000.  Amatulli will graduate as Rider's third all-time leading setter and she enters the playoffs with 2,733 career assists.

“I think about Ashlee's academic excellence and her ability to work hard and get the job done in the classroom and how she is an outstanding role model,” Feliciano said.  “I also think about the leader and mentor that she is to our younger setters.  She is almost like an assistant coach out there.”

“We could have played more consistent,” Amatulli said.  “But we gave everything we had.  We knew emotions would be running high and we threw everything out there.  Do we have any regrets?  No.  Do we have things we need to work on and change.  Yes.”

Also for the Broncs, senior Jaclyn Webber (Anaheim, Calif./Canyon) had 16 digs and 15 kills.

Sophomore Ryan Ackermann (Ashburn, Va./Stone Bridge) compiled 11 kills and four blocks with freshman setter Veronica Koval (Allentown, Pa./Parkland) adding 14 assists and six digs.

Rider was out-hit .297 to .158. 

Marist won 3-2 over Rider on October 18, sweeping the season series and the Red Foxes clinched the top seed in the conference playoffs, November 20-22 with their program record 23rd win.

“When we are emotionally and mentally engaged, we are a good volleyball team,” Feliciano said.  “I credit that to the senior leaders on the team.  If we play with more consistency, we will be in great shape to win matches against teams like Marist.”

This was only the third loss in 12 home matches for Rider this season.

Prior to the match, the Bronc marketing department, led by Donte Carty, clipped together a 10 minute video tribute to the five graduating seniors, Amatulli, Webber, Kayla Wong (Tustin, Calif./Arnold O. Beckman), Rachel Jensen (Buena Park, Calif./Troy) and Kelsey Kowalski (Wrightstown/Northern Burlington Regional), a group that led Rider's transformation from a five win season in 2011 to 32 wins over the last two seasons.

“I have helped instill a work ethic to give everything you have,” Amatulli added.  “We just remind each other of that day in and day out.”

In her final match in Alumni Gym, Wong finished with seven digs, six kills and a block with Jensen adding five kills, two digs and two blocks.

Rider is the number five seed in Florida this coming week in the MAAC playoffs and the Broncs will face number four seed Fairfield at 2pm on November 20 at Disney's Wide World of Sports.  The Stags won 3-0 over Rider in Lawrenceville on October 11 and defeated the Broncs 3-0 on October 25 in Connecticut.

“We've already began working on a game plan,” Feliciano said.  “It's a short turn around with only two practices.  We are playing a volleyball match and not the name on the opponent's uniform and we need to approach it as such.  We have played some tough competition and we are looking for that experience to take over and help us achieve a conference Championship.  The reality is that all 10 teams are 0-0 and we have to take that approach.”

-RU-