Highlanders Split Doubleheader, Pick Up First Win of The Season

Published: Tuesday, September 2, 2025

The NJIT women's volleyball team secured their first win of the season in a hard-fought four-set battle against Stonehill in double header at the Iona Invitational. This win marks three years in a row the Highlanders have won a match on opening weekend.

Match 1 at Iona:

Set Scores
Set 1: Iona - 25 | NJIT - 21
Set 2: NJIT - 26 | Iona - 24
Set 3: Iona - 25 | NJIT – 22
Set 4: Iona – 25 | NJIT – 19

NJIT picked up their first set win of the season in game one of two in today's doubleheader, but their second set effort was enough falling to Iona in four sets. The Highlanders struggled in hitting inconsistency, finishing with a .091 team hitting percentage. Despite this, the Highlanders showed great fight in every set.

In the first set, the Highlanders found themselves in a five-point hole but were able to rally back late to get the score within one, but the rally was short lived with the Gaels scoring three straight points to secure the set.

Set two the Highlanders continued showing fight and took the Gaels down to the wire and used some late set momentum to pick up the set win. Senior Mariana Cova was again a key performer, tying the team lead with 12 kills and 14.5 points. Freshman Martina Gonzalo Cortes also led the team with 12 kills of her own and a strong defensive showing with 16 digs. Sophomore Finely McAndrew led the team with 21 digs, continuing her standout play in the back row.

Match 2 vs Stonehill:

Set Scores
Set 1: NJIT - 25 | Stonehill - 21
Set 2: NJIT - 25 | Stonehill - 19
Set 3: Stonehill - 25 | NJIT – 23
Set 4: NJIT – 25 | Stonehill – 21

The Highlanders picked up their first win of the season against the Skyhawks in four sets in game two of the doubleheader. The Highlanders' offense surged them to victory, led by Freshman Emma Wild with 12 kills while Senior Mariana Cova and Freshman Martina Gonzalo Cortes each added 10 and 7 kills, respectively.

Defensively, NJIT out-dug Stonehill 45–43, Sophomore Finley McAndrew leading the back court effort with 11 digs and Gonzalo Cortes had 10 digs. McAndrew also led the team with 27 assists and was a key contributor to the team's success.

Tournament Honors
Sophomore Finley McAndrew was named to the Iona Invitational All-Tournament Team. McAndrew finished the weekend with 13.0 points, 38 digs and 75 assists.