Rider University Athletics

Lawrenceville, NJ – The Rider University volleyball team blanked visiting Saint Peter's, 3-0, on Sunday afternoon inside Alumni Gymnasium in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) action. The Broncs scored their 10th shutout win of the fall and second against SPU thanks to defeating the Peacocks by scores of 25-14, 25-21 and 25-19.

Rider (17-14, 10-8 MAAC) swept the season series with Saint Peter's (0-30, 0-18 MAAC) and clinched a berth in the MAAC Championship Tournament next weekend. The Broncs will have to wait for tomorrow's results to see their seed as they could finish as high as the third seed.

The Broncs controlled momentum throughout the contest and gave their three graduating seniors something to smile about in their final collegiate home match.

Offensively, senior Jennifer Borio (Ridley Park, PA/Padua Academy) led the Rider attack with 16 kills and an impressive .536 hitting percentage. Junior Hailey Riede (Haworth, NJ/Northern Valley-Demarest) continued her solid play with 13 kills and a .632 attack percentage. In the middle, junior Perry Williams (Portland, OR/Cleveland) and sophomore Evelyn Shanefield (Drexel Hill, PA/Upper Darby) chipped in seven and eight kills, respectively

Senior setter Veronica Koval (Allentown, PA/Parkland) was solid on both sides of the ball for the hosts as she recorded her third straight double-double. Koval finished with 42 assists and 13 digs.

Defensively, senior tri-captain Emma Aldaya (Prospect Park, PA/Merion Mercy Academy) played well with 18 digs. In 10 sets this week, Aldaya has racked up 59 digs and she averaging 5.90 digs per set. Sophomore Rachelle Runyon (Aliso Viejo, CA/Aliso Niguel) contributed 10 digs.   

Notes & Quotes
"Honestly, this is very bittersweet. We've worked so hard to get here it's funny to think about when we came here as 18 year-olds and now we're playing our last game in Alumni. It's exciting and sad because we've given so much to the program and the program's given us so much." – Senior Jennifer Borio

"When we got here it was so strange because we were the class that everyone was talking about and we didn't understand why. We were babies when we got here and we didn't realize until now as we seen how much we've grown as people. We're much more mature. The program has brought in a lot of new faces and new talent each year which has been really exciting as well. We've learned how to click more and we've also grown as leaders." – Senior Emma Aldaya

"I'd tell the team to leave everything on the court. Eventually they are going to be standing in our shoes. Looking back on four years it feels like yesterday that we just signed our NLI's and here we are playing our last match in Alumni. So, I'd tell them to savor every moment." – Senior Veronica Koval

"You have a little bit of everything with this group of seniors. A little humor, a little bit of seriousness and all three of them are hardworking. They're trendsetters. Every year, every graduating class means different things to us. They've believed in what we're trying to do here. These three are great examples. I'm sad to see them to go. They are great people. Finding a group like this is a rarity. I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to call them my leaders and call them my captains. We've worked really hard together. I've become a better coach because of their presence and I've become a better leader by working with them." – Rider Head Coach Chris Feliciano 

- Rider had 53 kills, 61 digs and three total blocks.
- The Broncs took advantage of 17 SPU attack errors.
- The Broncs finish the year with an 8-4 record at home and 10-4 mark inside the Garden State.
- In his seventh season at the helm of the program, Chris Feliciano picked up his 98th career victory on Friday. He is second in Rider history in wins.

Broncs by the Numbers
- Koval has had 25 or more assists in 27 matches this season, including 22 straight. Koval became the Rider all-time leader in assists on Wednesday and on Friday she became the first player in program history to record 3,000 career assists. The double-double was her team-leading 13th of the 2017 and her third in a row. She is the only Bronc with a double-double this year.
- Riede has a team-best 356 kills in 2017. She is now ninth all-time in Rider history with 975 career kills. It marked her 17th match of the year with a hitting percentage over .300. In conference play, she averaged over 13 kills per match.     
- Aldaya has recorded 10 or more digs in 23 matches this season, including 13 times in MAAC play.
- Savannah Logan added six kills for the Broncs.
- Brynn Sherbert had seven digs for Rider.