St. John's University Athletics
Friday, September 11
New Rochelle, N.Y.
5 p.m.
St. John's University
vs
Central Connecticut State
Photo by: Vincent Dusovic
St. John’s Volleyball Set to Compete at Iona Invitational This Weekend
9/10/2026 1:45:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Red Storm will play CCSU, NJIT and Iona
QUEENS, N.Y. – The St. John's volleyball team will make its longest trip of the month of September to the Iona Invitational in New Rochelle, N.Y. The Red Storm kick off the weekend against Central Connecticut on Friday at 5 p.m. in the Hynes Athletic Center. On Saturday, action continues versus NJIT at 1 p.m. and concludes with a 6 p.m. first serve at Iona.
The first two contests of the weekend will be streamed on Iona Insider, while the match against Iona will air on ESPN+. Live stats for all three matches can be found at RedStormSports.com.
The Red Storm picked up its first road victory of the 2026 season on Tuesday night, sweeping Fordham, 3-0, at Rose Hill Gym.
The Johnnies used a balanced offensive attack, recording 39 kills from eight different players. Lejla Hadziredzepovic led the Johnnies with nine kills and 3.5 total blocks, while Carola Tesoro and Chloe Bell added seven kills apiece and Kendall White chipped in six. Amanda Caputi dished out 20 assists and Maggie Carcillo added 14, with both setters recording a pair of service aces. Rashanny Solano Smith anchored the defense with a match-high 14 digs as St. John's held Fordham to a .169 hitting percentage.
Solano Smith was named the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week on Monday afternoon after guiding St. John's to a 2-1 week and was selected to the Lou Carnesecca All-Tournament Team for her contributions. The libero tallied 76 digs, 14 assists and four service aces in 11 sets of play.
Through the first two weeks of the season, St. John's leads the BIG EAST in kills per set (13.63) and assists per set (13.00). Solano Smith currently ranks third in the NCAA Division I in digs (145) and fourth in digs per set (5.37), both of which sit atop the league. Tesoro leads the BIG EAST in kills with 110, while averaging 4.07 per set.
Central Connecticut enters the Iona Invitational with a 1-4 record, coming off a pair of 3-1 setbacks to Binghamton and Sacred Heart last weekend at the Sacred Heart Invitational.
St. John's holds a 7-1 overall record against Central Connecticut, with the lone loss occurring in the inaugural match between the two in St. John's first year as a varsity program back in 1994. The Red Storm are 1-0 against the Blue Devils in neutral-site matches.
The Blue Devils offense is led by opposite hitter Olivia Keckler with 76 kills, followed by middle blocker Cullen Winter. Winter leads the squad with 22 total blocks, averaging 1.10 rejections per set. Anja Milosevic paces the team with 154 assists, averaging 8.56 assists per frame. Annabella Denomme anchors the back line with 70 digs, collecting 3.50 per set.
NJIT will start the weekend with a 1-7 record, picking up a midweek win last Wednesday against Manhattan, 3-2. The Highlanders fell in all three contests at the DSU Invitational last weekend and suffered another setback to Lafayette on Wednesday evening in Newark, 3-1.
St. John's holds a clean 4-0 record against NJIT. The last time the two squared off was on Sept. 10, 2024, with the Johnnies walking away with a 3-0 win. The NJIT offense is led by Ema Torres with 61 kills. Setting duties are split between Cece Marino and Finley McAndrew, averaging 3.30 and 3.54 per set, respectively. On the defensive side of the net, Tereza Motalova has recorded 17.0 total blocks, seven of which are solo rejections.
The Gaels carry a 2-4 record into their home tournament, most recently going 1-2 at the Big Apple Tournament hosted by Columbia. St. John's is 10-0 against Iona, with the most recent win coming during the 10th Annual Jack Kaiser Volleyball Classic in 2024. The Red Storm picked up a 3-0 win on Sept. 20.
As a team, Iona ranks fourth in the NCAA Division I in digs per set with 16.95, as six players have notched 30 or more digs. The Gaels are led by Avery Gaume with 87 total digs, collecting 3.95 per set. Offensively, Iona is led by Julis Leonardo with 66 kills, firing 3.47 per set. Jaylyn Simon quarterbacks the offense with 161 assists, dishing out 8.05 per frame. Buse Tinaz patrols the net with 18 total blocks, rejecting 0.90 shots per set.
After this weekend, St. John's will begin a seven-match homestand with the 12th Annual Jack Kaiser Volleyball Classic from Sept. 18-19. The Red Storm will host Penn, Bryant and Rutgers for its final home tournament of the 2026 season.
The first two contests of the weekend will be streamed on Iona Insider, while the match against Iona will air on ESPN+. Live stats for all three matches can be found at RedStormSports.com.
The Red Storm picked up its first road victory of the 2026 season on Tuesday night, sweeping Fordham, 3-0, at Rose Hill Gym.
The Johnnies used a balanced offensive attack, recording 39 kills from eight different players. Lejla Hadziredzepovic led the Johnnies with nine kills and 3.5 total blocks, while Carola Tesoro and Chloe Bell added seven kills apiece and Kendall White chipped in six. Amanda Caputi dished out 20 assists and Maggie Carcillo added 14, with both setters recording a pair of service aces. Rashanny Solano Smith anchored the defense with a match-high 14 digs as St. John's held Fordham to a .169 hitting percentage.
Solano Smith was named the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week on Monday afternoon after guiding St. John's to a 2-1 week and was selected to the Lou Carnesecca All-Tournament Team for her contributions. The libero tallied 76 digs, 14 assists and four service aces in 11 sets of play.
Through the first two weeks of the season, St. John's leads the BIG EAST in kills per set (13.63) and assists per set (13.00). Solano Smith currently ranks third in the NCAA Division I in digs (145) and fourth in digs per set (5.37), both of which sit atop the league. Tesoro leads the BIG EAST in kills with 110, while averaging 4.07 per set.
Central Connecticut enters the Iona Invitational with a 1-4 record, coming off a pair of 3-1 setbacks to Binghamton and Sacred Heart last weekend at the Sacred Heart Invitational.
St. John's holds a 7-1 overall record against Central Connecticut, with the lone loss occurring in the inaugural match between the two in St. John's first year as a varsity program back in 1994. The Red Storm are 1-0 against the Blue Devils in neutral-site matches.
The Blue Devils offense is led by opposite hitter Olivia Keckler with 76 kills, followed by middle blocker Cullen Winter. Winter leads the squad with 22 total blocks, averaging 1.10 rejections per set. Anja Milosevic paces the team with 154 assists, averaging 8.56 assists per frame. Annabella Denomme anchors the back line with 70 digs, collecting 3.50 per set.
NJIT will start the weekend with a 1-7 record, picking up a midweek win last Wednesday against Manhattan, 3-2. The Highlanders fell in all three contests at the DSU Invitational last weekend and suffered another setback to Lafayette on Wednesday evening in Newark, 3-1.
St. John's holds a clean 4-0 record against NJIT. The last time the two squared off was on Sept. 10, 2024, with the Johnnies walking away with a 3-0 win. The NJIT offense is led by Ema Torres with 61 kills. Setting duties are split between Cece Marino and Finley McAndrew, averaging 3.30 and 3.54 per set, respectively. On the defensive side of the net, Tereza Motalova has recorded 17.0 total blocks, seven of which are solo rejections.
The Gaels carry a 2-4 record into their home tournament, most recently going 1-2 at the Big Apple Tournament hosted by Columbia. St. John's is 10-0 against Iona, with the most recent win coming during the 10th Annual Jack Kaiser Volleyball Classic in 2024. The Red Storm picked up a 3-0 win on Sept. 20.
As a team, Iona ranks fourth in the NCAA Division I in digs per set with 16.95, as six players have notched 30 or more digs. The Gaels are led by Avery Gaume with 87 total digs, collecting 3.95 per set. Offensively, Iona is led by Julis Leonardo with 66 kills, firing 3.47 per set. Jaylyn Simon quarterbacks the offense with 161 assists, dishing out 8.05 per frame. Buse Tinaz patrols the net with 18 total blocks, rejecting 0.90 shots per set.
After this weekend, St. John's will begin a seven-match homestand with the 12th Annual Jack Kaiser Volleyball Classic from Sept. 18-19. The Red Storm will host Penn, Bryant and Rutgers for its final home tournament of the 2026 season.
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
L/DS
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
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