St. John’s Handles North Carolina A&T, 3-0, in First Round of the NIVC

Saturday, December 7

Charlottesville, Va. (Memorial Gymnasium)

6 p.m.

St. John's University

22-12,10-8Big East

North Carolina A&T

17-11,12-6CAA

St. John's (NY)

N.C. A&T

St. John’s Handles North Carolina A&T, 3-0, in First Round of the NIVC

12/7/2024 8:57:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Erin Jones earned the 10th triple-double of her season

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The St. John's volleyball team handled North Carolina A&T in straight sets, 3-0, in the first round of the NIVC on Saturday night inside Virginia's Memorial Gymnasium. The scores of the sets were 25-22, 25-22 and 25-21.

With the win, St. John's (22-12, 10-8 BIG EAST) has now won the opening round of the NIVC for the third-straight season.

"So exciting to see my players back out on the court, playing postseason volleyball with such passion and joy," said Head Coach Joanne Persico. "Such great effort to knock off a well-coached and feisty North Carolina A&T team from the CAA. We had great leadership from Wiktoria Kowalczyk, Rashanny Solano Smith and Magda Stambrowska. Ana Benjamim's performance was one for ages"

Erin Jones notched her 10^th triple-double of the season against North Carolina A&T (17-11, 12-6 CAA). The junior tallied 16 assists, 13 digs and 13 kills. She also tacked on two aces and a block assist.

Benjamim logged 10 kills at an efficient 47.4 hitting percentage to go along with an assist, a dig and a block. Stambrowska registered eight kills at a 35 percent hitting clip.

Solano Smith was all over the court for the Red Storm in Memorial Gymnasium, racking up 24 digs, 10 of which came in the third set. The standout averaged eight digs per set in the match, coinciding with two assists and an ace. Bree Martin also provided eight digs and an ace to the Johnnies' totals.

Kowalczyk led the Red Storm with 17 helpers, paired with two digs and two aces. Ludovica Zola paced the team with three total rejections.

After a 7-7 start in the opening set, North Carolina A&T sparked a 4-2 spurt, taking an 11-9 early lead. St. John's responded with three consecutive points that featured a pair of kills from Jones and Kya Harris to go ahead, 12-11. Trading side-outs to a 22-22 tie, the Red Storm claimed the first frame, 25-22, on a 3-0 rally that was capped off by a Kowalczyk ace. Jones paced the Johnnies with six digs and four kills in the first game.

The Aggies built a 9-4 advantage in the second stanza, leading to St. John's first timeout of the set. After talking things over, the Red Storm erupted for a 5-1 stretch that featured two blocks from Zola, cutting its deficit down to one, 10-9. Exchanging scores to a 15-14 Aggie edge, the Johnnies engineered a 5-2 surge behind a pair of Stambrowska slams, taking a 19-16 edge late in the frame. North Carolina A&T brought the lead down to one, 19-18, but the Johnnies handled business with a crucial 6-4 scoring rally that won the second set, 25-22. Solano Smith picked up nine digs in the second game.

The Aggies jumped out to a 9-2 lead at the beginning of the third period, burning both of the Red Storm's timeouts. St. John's put together a clutch 9-2 run on the back of four Benjamim kills, evening the frame up at 11. Tied at 13-all, the Johnnies rang up another 5-2 rally that took advantage of three Aggie errors, earning a three-point, 18-15 edge. North Carolina A&T tied the frame back up at 20, but it wasn't enough as the Johnnies closed out the third set and the match, 25-21 on a final 5-1 run. Solano Smith registered a whopping 10 digs in the last stanza.

The Red Storm will return to Memorial Gymnasium tomorrow at 6 p.m. when it squares off with Virginia in the NIVC Super 16. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. from Charlottesville, Va.