DENTON, Texas – Rutgers volleyball went to four sets with Miami, a squad receiving votes in the AVCA Top 25 Poll, in its 2024 opener on Friday evening at the Super Pit at the UNT Invitational.
The Scarlet Knights and Hurricanes battled through 14 ties in the opening frame with Miami ultimately coming out on top, 28-26, followed by RU tying up the match with a 25-23 victory in set two in another tightly contested frame. The Hurricanes, however, took the victory behind a 25-19 set three win and a 25-10 win in set four.
- Returning Second Team All-Big Ten attacker Alissa Kinkela opened the season leading RU with 12 kills, two aces and a pair of blocks.
- Natalie Robinson made her Scarlet Knight debut with eight kills hitting .538 and a game-high four blocks. The rookie Scarlet Knight made only one error on 13 swings.
- Anna Hartman’s sophomore season began with eight kills on 10 swings through the evening’s first two sets.
- Aly Borellis, a junior transfer from Ole Miss, collected 16 assists, while Lily Bolen registered 15 helpers to accompany a trio of aces.
- Sophomore Kenzie Dyrstad racked up a game-high 12 digs.
- S1 (26-28) | Rutgers outscored Miami 8-1 to go in front 17-12. The run was capped by a tape tickler on Lily Bolen’s first career ace ending a string of five consecutive Scarlet Knight points. Miami responded with six of the next eight points and knotted the opener up at 21 all. Three ties ensued down the stretch before the Hurricanes put the frame away. One of Alissa Kinkela’s five kills in the set and a Miami attack error put RU at set point at 24-22, but a pair of Grace Lopez kills kept Miami in the stanza. An Aly Borellis swing equaled the score at 25-25 and another Hurricane miscue kept the opener going at a 26-26 stalemate. Miami took the set on back-to-back kills from Lopez and Flormarie Heredia Colon.
S1 | Tape tickler for the ♠️ has the Scarlet Knights on a 5-0 🏃♀️#GoRU ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/W5Xy4up6Mg
— Rutgers Volleyball (@RUvball) August 30, 2024
- Set 2 (25-23) | It was another back-and-forth battle in set two with the Scarlet Knights coming out on top to tie the match up at 1-1. Altogether the set endured 13 ties and six lead changes. With the U out in front 17-16, the Scarlet Knights rattled off the next four points including swings…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Rutgers University Athletics…