NEWARK, NJ—Visiting New York University swept NJIT, 3-0, in the Highlanders' final home men's volleyball match of 2009 Tuesday night in the Estelle and Zoom Fleisher Athletic Center.

The Violets scored the win by taking the first set, 30-25, and then edging the Highlanders in a thrilling 36-34 second set, before posting an emphatic 30-18 decision in the clinching set.

Tuesday night's match was the second of the season between NJIT and NYU, who have been competing in separate divisions of the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association for the past two seasons. NJIT has been in the EIVA Tait Division in 2008 and 2009, while NYU is in the EIVA Hay Division. Back on January 27 in NJIT's second match of the season, the Highlanders defeated the Violets, 3-1, in New York.

The individual leaders for the winners were: Devin Zolnowski (23 kills and 10 digs); Ilan Goldstein (50 assists and 2 service aces); Jay Hayes (10 digs); and, Luke Hamlet (5 block assists). Zolnowski and Francis Hodgson each added four block assists, while Michael Ferragonio contributed 12 kills to the NYU attack.

Freshman Ricky Duran was the kills leader for the Highlanders, with 14, and senior Rodrigo Correa, playing his final home match, collected 35 assists.

Another senior, Robert Thomas, accounted for one of NJIT's two service aces, while the second one came from freshman Nick Jensen. Thomas' four block assists led the Highlander defense at the net. Freshman Glen DeMagalhaes led NJIT's defense on the floor, with nine digs.

The first set was relatively close at 30-25, but NYU which had trailed by two points earlier, took the lead for good with a 4-0 spurt to break a 19-19 tie and never let the Highlanders closer than two points the rest of the set.

The second set was a spirited affair, as NJIT built a 21-17 lead, only to squander it face set point at 28-29. The Highlanders gained a reprieve by scoring the next to points for a 30-29 lead. NJIT reached set point again at 31-30, but the Violets came back to take the lead twice before finally securing the 36-34 win on kills by Zolnowski (35th point) and Ferragonio (36th point).

Having pulled out the hard-fought second-set win, the visitors never trailed in the third set and secured the easy win, 30-18.

Three Highlander seniors played their final career home matches. They were: hitter Amobi Armstrong; Correa, the setter; and the middle, Thomas.

All three are completing four-year stints as members of the Highlanders and were part of NJIT teams that qualified for the EIVA playoffs in 2006, 2007, and 2008.

The 2007 team won the EIVA Hay Division, earning promotion to the EIVA Tait Division for 2008. And the 2008 Highlanders advanced to the semifinals of the EIVA postseason playoffs before losing in five sets to George Mason, which was ranked 11th in the nation at the time.

Armstrong was EIVA all-East second team as a junior, while Correa, a four-year starting setter has been EIVA all-academic each of the last two seasons and the Albert Dorman Honors College student will certainly repeat as an all-academic selection again this year as soon as the teams are announced later this month. Thomas has been a contributor for all four years, including last year, when he was second on the team in blocks for a team that advanced within two matches of the NCAA Collegiate Championship field.

The Highlanders will wrap up the 2009 season with an EIVA Tait Division match on Saturday at 4 pm in Fairfax, VA, against George Mason.

By coincidence, NYU, too, reached the 2008 EIVA playoff semifinals, where it lost to eventual national champion Penn State. And George Mason, which will by NJIT's final opponent of 2009 by dictate of the schedule, was also the final opponent for the Highlanders in 2008 by reason of both squads earning spots in the playoff semifinals.

NJIT is slated to return to the EIVA Hay Division for the 2010 season.