Rhode Island Starters
Powers, Melton, Tombline, Rolle, Vente, Jonick, Houchens (L)

NJIT Starters 
Cova, West, Gonzalo Cortez, Parker, Marino, Torres, Emil (L)

How It Happened
Freshman Hannah Jonick had the best night of her young career, and Havyn Rolle and Chloe Abuto dominated the fifth set as Rhode Island (3-8) defeated NJIT (3-9) in five sets Friday. The Rams won 18-25, 25-19, 25-16, 14-25, 15-5.

Set One – NJIT 25, Rhode Island 18
With the score tied 4-4, NJIT went on a 7-1 to take early control. Ema Torres had six kills to lead the hosts, who hit .294 as a team. Rhode Island struggled to find rhythm, hitting .075 as it fell behind by a set quickly..

Set Two – Rhode Island 25, NJIT 19
Trailing 10-9 after a Chloe Abuto kill, Rhode Island went on a 6-0 run with Dakota Henry serving. Hannah Jonick had three kills and combined with Emma Vente on a block during the streak, helping URI pull in front 15-10. NJIT never got closer than four points the rest of the way and Rhody evened the match.

Set Three – Rhode Island 25, NJIT 16
A set of 11-4 swings defined the third set for Rhode Island. Rhode Island seemed well in command when an Emma Vente ace put the Rams ahead 11-4. However, NJIT responded with an 11-3 run, going ahead 15-14 after a Kiera McCarles ball handling error. Rhody then ended the set with an 11-4 run that included three kills from Emma Vente and two from Hannah Jonick.

Set Four - NJIT 25, Rhode Island 14
NJIT put on a display in the fourth set, hitting .452 as a team. The Highlanders had 15 kills and just one attack error as a team, as Ema Torres led the way with five kills. 9-0 run by NJIT. A 9-0 run turned an 8-7 advantage into a 17-7 lead, and NJIT forced a fifth set after a Taylor West block ended the fourth.

Set Five - Rhode Island 15, NJIT 5
The deciding set was all Rhode Island. Trailing 3-2, the Rams used an 8-0 run to gain full control. The key stretch of the match included two kills each from Chloe Abuto, Havyn Rolle and Emma Vente, plus a block by Abuto and Rolle. Rolle ended the match with her seventh kills of the night.

Inside the Box Score

• For the first time this season, Rhode Island had multiple players reach double digits in kills.
• Freshman Hannah Jonick had a career-high 17 kills with just one error, hitting .552 for the match.
• Jonick had 14 kills on the season entering the match.
• Redshirt senior Emma Vente had 13 kills, while redshirt sophomore McKenna Melton had 10 kills.
• Senior Ryleigh Powers and sophomore Dakota Henry each had a season-high 17 digs.
• Junior Sydney Houchens added eight digs.
• Senior Kiera McCarles had 25 assists and eight digs.
• Freshman Autumn Tombline had a career-high 19 assists, two kills and two digs.
• Junior Chloe Abuto had eight kills and three blocks, while sophomore Havyn Rolle added seven kills, four digs and three blocks.

Up Next
Rhode Island stays on the road for a visit Saturday, Sept. 20 at Manhattan. The 2 p.m. match will stream on GoJaspers.com.