WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL CLINCHES PLAYOFF BERTH WITH THRILLING WIN

Middlesex College Women's Volleyball clinched their first playoff berth in years in a thrilling five-set win over Ocean County College.

Down 15-14 in the deciding fifth set, the Colts (8-5) scored the final three points of the set to take the set and match.

"It was a great win for the team," said Head Coach Henry Romero. "The win locked us in for the playoffs. I am so happy for these eight young ladies who have worked so hard this season. I am glad they were able to get the win at home in front of our fans and their family."

Ocean County College (1-4) started the match with a 25-19 first-set win in which they led nearly the entire set. The Colts were able to turn things around in the next set when they led a close set most of the way. With Middlesex up 19-18, the Colts went on a 6-3 run to even the match at one set apiece. Rachel Erla (Sophomore/Sayreville, NJ) ended the set with a well-placed kill. Erla finished with seven blocks and six kills in the match.

The Colts finished the third set strong as well, turning a 21-19 deficit into a 25-22 win by going on a 6-1 run to end the match to take a 2-1 lead. Middlesex looked like they were going to be on their way to a win in the fourth set as well as they opened a 12-6 lead over the Vikings. However, Ocean County went on a 15-0 run and held off a late Middlesex surge to take the fourth set 25-20.

Middlesex jumped out to leads of 5-1 and 8-4 in the deciding fifth set, but a 7-2 run by Ocean County tied the set at 11. From there, the set was tied at 12, 13, 14 and 15 before Middlesex scored the final two points needed for victory. 

Johanna Kovalewich (Freshman/Colonia, NJ) had 19 kills and a season-high 23 digs to lead the way for the Colts. Setter Kilanny Ramos-Adrian (Sophomore/Perth Amboy, NJ) had 22 assists and 12 digs while Karla Berrios (Freshman/New Brunswick, NJ) had a well-rounded game with 15 service points, 14 digs, four aces and eight kills. 

"We had a big day from our middles, Karla Berrios and Rachel Erla," added Romero.

With the win, the Colts clinched just their third playoff appearance in the program's history, a dramatic turnaround from the past few seasons when the team struggled to compete or wasn't able to filed a team. The Colts have two matches remaining before the playoffs begin on October 25. Middlesex will take on Union County College tonight at 7:15pm in a makeup of a previously rescheduled match and then travel to Brookdale Community College to close out their regular season tomorrow. Information on playoff seeding and playoff opponent is forthcoming.