Newark, NJ – Senior DELANEY ST. PIERRE tallied 30 assists, eight digs, and seven kills as the Montclair State volleyball team topped Rutgers-Newark 25-13, 25-7, and 25-18 Tuesday evening.

The Red Hawks (8-7, 3-1 NJAC) held Rutgers-Newark (2-8, 1-2 NJAC) to a .000 hitting percentage over the three sets and limited the Scarlet Raiders to a mere 18 kills.

The host Scarlet Raiders grabbed an early 7-4 advantage, but they raced back to tie things at seven thanks to two kills from CARLY WATERMAN and an ace from KATIE RODMAN. A kill by Alexa Rivera put the hosts back in front, but Montclair erupted for a 7-1 spurt to break the period open. LEAH HIGGINS had two kills during the rally, while KIARA POLANCO added an ace. Montclair finished the set with the final seven markers, as Waterman posted consecutive kills to end the game.

The second stanza was all Montclair, as the team scored 16 of the first 18 points. St. Pierre served seven straight points as the Red Hawks took advantage of a trio of Scarlet Raider attack errors. MSU went up 6-2 in the third thanks to a double-block by Higgins and GIANNA ARIAS, but Rutgers-Newark closed the gap to six thanks to a Higgins attack error. The lead in the third set grew to 10 as Arias, and St. Pierre teamed up for a block, but the hosts got back into the set with a 6-2 run. The rally trimmed their deficit to five, but Higgins brought up match point with a kill. St. Pierre capped off her big night with a service ace to complete the three-set victory.

Higgins led the Red Hawks with 11 kills while SKYLAR KOWALSKI hit .545 (6-0-11). Arias tallied three block assists while KATELYN MONAGHAN posted a team-high 17 digs. Sharon Starling led the Scarlet Raiders with seven kills.

Montclair returns home Saturday, hosting St. Joseph's-Long Island and Neumann in a tri-match. MSU will face St. Joseph's at 11 am before taking on Neumann at 3 pm.