College Volleyball
Rider University 3, Saint Peter's University 0
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Match

JERSEY CITY—The Rider University volleyball team held on to first place in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference with a 3-0 road win at Saint Peter's University on Wednesday night with the Broncs prevailing 28-26, 25-21, 25-22.

“I'm pleased with the effort tonight,” said head coach Christopher Feliciano.  “Despite the scores, I felt that we played much better than in recent matches.  There was good balance emotionally and the team showed a lot of maturity winning on the road.  Road wins are important and that is something we are still learning how to do.”

Rider (6-6, 2-0 MAAC) was led by 12 kills each from freshman Hailey Riede (Haworth/Northern Valley-Demarest) and junior Ryan Ackermann (Ashburn, Va./Stone Bridge) along with 23 assists and six digs from sophomore Veronica Koval (Allentown, Pa./Parkland).

Trailing 24-21 and facing set point in the opening frame, Rider rallied for five straight points to go ahead 1-0, behind three kills from Riede and two assists from Koval.  Riede, who leads the conference in attack percentage, was named the MAAC Rookie of the Week this past week after earning all-tournament honors at UMBC.

“Finding a way to win that opening set was nice to see,” Feliciano said.  “That is difficult to do against anybody.  With the players that are out and having others step up, it is a great thing to know how deep you really are and the team is showing me that they continue to make strides and get better and that means we will be that much better of a team when we get healthy.”

“Veronica is running the system with more fluidity and Hailey, when you are a 6-2 lefty and can jump the way she does, you are going to score.  She is a smart player who found ways to score tonight,” added Feliciano.

Tied 20-20 in the second set, kills by Riede and junior Kaitlyn Griffin (Chesapeake, Va./Hickory) sparked the Broncs to a 5-1 run to close out the set by four, heading into the 10 minute intermission.  A preseason All-MAAC honoree, Griffin finished with 10 kills and five blocks.

“This is only the second time in 12 matches that we've won a second set,” Feliciano said.  “It's about learning how to run points together and that gives you a cushion to make an error here and there.”

Trailing 18-15, Rider rallied with eight straight points, including two service aces from sophomore Emma Aldaya (Prospect Park, Pa./Merion Mercy Academy) in the third set to go ahead 23-18 and force the Peacocks to burn both of their time outs, enroute to a three-point victory to clinch the match.  The conference leader in digs per set, Aldaya led Rider with 14 digs in the match.

“In my opinion, Emma is one of the top four liberos in the conference,” Feliciano said.  “There were moments when she was super athletic and moments when she was smart.  She controlled the tempo of the match and overall we need to do that with more frequency.”

Rider attacked only .190 but had seven services aces, including two from Aldaya.

Also for the Broncs, senior Brandie Hill (Portland, Ore./Lincoln) had 20 assists, four digs and two service aces.

Rider swept the season series from Saint Peter's last season, winning 3-0 in Lawrenceville and 3-2 in Jersey City.  In 2013, the Broncs won twice, both by 3-1 scores.  Rider leads the all-time series 24-20 and the Broncs have won 11 matches in a row over the Peacocks.

This is the second season in a row that Rider opened MAAC play 2-0.  Rider opened 5-0 in conference play in 2014 but finished only 10-8 in MAAC play overall.

“We won two conference matches early and took care of what we needed to do, getting off to a good start in MAAC play,” Feliciano said.  “All we can do is control what we do.  We need to focus on continuing to get better and continue to be a dangerous team that knows how to win on the road and overcome challenges and adversity.  We are still learning.”

Rider competes at the Lafayette Tournament September 18-19 against NJIT, St. Francis Brooklyn and the host Leopards.

The Broncs return home on Saturday, September 26 against Marist College at 1pm in Alumni Gymnasium.

-RU-