(NEWARK, N.J.) – The season came to a close for men's volleyball today as Randolph-Macon was defeated in three sets at Rutgers-Newark on Saturday afternoon. The No. 5 Yellow Jackets took the No. 4 Scarlet Raiders to the brink in the first two sets, but the hosts held on and prevented a comeback in the third.

The Basics

Score: Randolph-Macon 0, Rutgers-Newark 3 (25-22, 25-23, 25-15)

Venue: The Golden Dome

Records: R-MC 4-6, Newark 8-4

How It Happened

• The Jackets and Scarlet Raiders were even for most of the first set and were last tied at 17-all after a Newark service error. The hosts were quick to regain the point which sparked a 5-0 rally. R-MC responded with a four-point rally of its own started on kills by Jarrett Carrano (So., Beaverdam, Va. / Patrick Henry) and Kolby Gibson (So., Bumpass, Va. / Louisa), but the Raiders finished the match with three of the last four points.
• Randolph-Macon had an impressive second set and led in the early going. A four-point rally with a Scotty Carter (Jr., Virginia Beach, Va. / Frank W. Cox) kill and an ace by him as well gave the Jackets at 13-11 lead. Another Carrano kill tied the set at 20-20, but Newark came back with the next three points.
• A strong start in the third saw the Jackets jump out to a 7-4 lead on an ace by Carrano. The three point advantage came again at 8-5 after an error on the Raiders, but they responded with the next nine points to take control of the game and closed out the match.

Inside The Numbers

• Gibson led the offense with 10 kills and Carrano was one shy of double figures. Cade Terrell (Fr., Glen Allen, Va. / Deep Run) was largely responsible for setting them up with 19 assists.
• Defensively Gibson and Connor Logan (Jr., Montpelier, Va. / Patrick Henry) led the way with five digs each.
• This was the first tournament appearance in program history for the Yellow Jackets.