JERSEY CITY, NJ – The Rider University volleyball team defeated hOURglass rival Saint Peter's, 3-0, in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) action on Saturday afternoon at the Yanitelli Center.
 
The Broncs (9-13, 6-4 MAAC) defeated the Peacocks (3-18, 1-9 MAAC) by scores of 25-23, 25-20 and 25-21.
 
Once again, freshman Morgan Romano (Oviedo, FL/Hagerty) led the Rider attack with a match-high 14 kills. Romano put the exclamation point on the match with a kill to seal the victory in the third frame.
 
Offensively, senior Alexa Shello (Long Valley, NJ/West Morris Central) added nine kills of her own for the Broncs.
 
In the middle, Rider sophomore Anilee Sher (Poughkeepsie, NY/Spackenkill) continued her strong play. The second-year setter had 39 assists, nine digs, three service aces, two block assists and one kill.
 
Defensively, senior Rachelle Runyon (Aliso Viejo, CA/Aliso Niguel) had a match-high 15 digs.
 
NOTES & QUOTES
"It wasn't our prettiest effort, as we had some struggles earning our points early in each set. While we were trying to find our groove offensively and defensively, our serving certainly kept us with narrow leads. We eventually found some rhythm on offense and defense, but this type of effort will not benefit us moving forward into a very tough stretch of matches." – Rider Head Coach Jeff Rotondo
 
- The Broncs avenged a 3-2 setback to the Peacocks in Jersey City last November.
- Rider has now 20 of the last 21 meetings against Saint Peter's.
- As a team, Rider had 47 kills, five service aces, nine blocks and 51 digs.
- The Broncs took advantage of 17 Peacock attack errors.
- Rider remained firmly in fifth-place in the MAAC standings with the sweep of SPU.
- On Tuesday, Morgan Romano was named the MAAC Co-Rookie of the Week. It marked the seventh time this season in which she garnered weekly accolades from the conference.
 
BRONCS BY THE NUMBERS
- Morgan Romano continued the torrid start to her career. On the season, she has 370 kills and 418.0 points. Both of those are the most by a Rider freshman since Karen Finn in 1992. It was Romano's 20th match this year with 11 or more kills.
- Alexa Shello had nine or more kills for the sixth time this fall.
- Both Evelyn Shanefield and Morgan Koch had seven kills apiece.
- Runyon continues to be a steadying force on the back line for the Broncs. She had 15 or more digs in a match for seventh time in the last eight matches.
 
UP NEXT
Rider returns to action next weekend, October 26-27, with a pair of road conference matches against Marist and Siena. On Saturday the 26th, the Broncs will look to avenge a 3-2 setback to the Red Foxes earlier this season.