BROOKLYN, N.Y. — The St. Joseph's University, New York (Brooklyn) women's volleyball team opened the 2026 season with a narrow 3-2 defeat to Rutgers University-Newark on Tuesday evening at The Hill Center. The close loss marked the first match for the Bears under first-year head coach Michael McCullough.
After several early lead changes in the opening set, the Bears found their rhythm, paced by five kills from Carissa Zwiefelhofer (North Bend, Wash.), along with three apiece from Keren Crespo (Meriden, Conn.) and newcomer Amelia Jimenez (Middle Village, N.Y.). Fellow first-year Karson Brooks (Portland, Ore.) added six digs and three aces as the Bears closed out the frame, 25-22.
The Bears jumped out to a 5-1 advantage to begin the second set, with Abigail Encinia (Sunnyvale, Texas) helping spark the early run from the service line. SJBK maintained its slim lead throughout much of the set, but the Scarlet Raiders managed to pull even at 13-13 and again at 14-14 before outscoring the Bears, 11-3, down the stretch to take the set, 25-17, and even the match.
Rutgers-Newark capitalized on SJBK miscues in the third set, recording nine kills on the attack and using a 6-0 spurt to take an 18-12 lead. The Scarlet Raiders held on to claim the frame and take a 2-1 advantage in the match.
The Bears responded in the fourth, opening the set with an 8-0 outburst fueled by four aces from Encinia. The early surge set the tone for SJBK, and despite the Scarlet Raiders' efforts to chip away at the deficit, the Bears held firm to take the set, 25-20, and force a decisive fifth frame.
The final set saw the Bears again jump out to an early advantage, opening with a 5-1 lead that included Encinia's seventh ace of the evening. The visitors then tied it at 5-all, leading to both sides trading the lead. St. Joseph's took a 13-12 lead before the Scarlet Raiders secured the final three points to complete their 3-2 win to start their campaign.
Zwiefelhofer had a match-best 16 kills to go with 11 digs while Encinia led the contest with her seven aces. She also had 24 assists, nine digs and as many kills. Crespo, Brooks, and Michelle Piotrowski (Ridgewood, N.Y.) also brought up double-digit digs. Mariana Medrano (El Paso, Texas) finished with nine kills of her own.
The Bears take part in their lone tri-match on Saturday, September 5. They take on Penn State University Shenango at 12 pm before facing hosts Ramapo College at 2 pm.
