Box Score

JERSEY CITY, N.J. – The Yeshiva University men's volleyball team dropped its Skyline Conference opener to New Jersey City University, in straight sets, at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center on Thursday evening. Set scores were 25-15, 25-16, and 26-24.

The Gothic Knights (7-9, 1-0 Skyline) won the first two sets in convincing fashion, putting the Maccabees (2-7, 0-1 Skyline) on the brink. Yeshiva would not go down without a fight, as junior middle blocker Itai Guttman slammed home a kill to tie the third game, 4-4. Later in the set, two kills by freshman outside hitter Jonathan Greenberg sandwiched a 3-0 run by Yeshiva, putting the visiting team in the lead, 9-8.

After NJCU tied it up, a kill by junior setter Michael Klein tied the set at ten points apiece. Both teams were neck-in-neck throughout the stanza. Junior opposite hitter Mathew Rosenberg successfully attacked NJCU's defense with a kill, putting Yeshiva up, 15-14. Deadlocked at 18, a pair of errors by the Gothic Knights gave the Maccabees their largest lead of the match, at two. NJCU scored three unanswered points to retake the lead.

Down 23-22, Rosenberg produced a kill to even the game. NJCU earned a set-point opportunity, but a ball handling error by the Gothic Knights kept the Maccabees alive. However, NJCU scored two unanswered points to clinch the set and its first Skyline win of the season.

For the evening, Greenberg led YU's attack with six kills, while Rosenberg and Guttman each slammed home five. Klein had a team-high 15 assists with senior libero Hirschy Zaks added three assists of his own. On defense, Zaks led all players with eight digs, while Rosenberg led the team with two blocks. Guttman and sophomore middle blocker Samuel Marcus each had one block, with the former adding two digs.

It's a quick turnaround for Yeshiva, as the Maccabees will battle the Beavers of the City College of New York in a non-conference match at the Nat Holman Gymnasium, on Friday. First serve is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.