Old Westbury, N.Y. (Oct. 26, 2009) - The NYIT women's volleyball team defeated Mercy College 3-1 tonight in East Coast Conference action. Sophomore Tugce Sirdas (Istanbul, Turkey) had a match-high 14 kills in the win for the Bears who improve to 10-17 overall and 4-5 in the ECC. The loss drops Mercy to 4-20 on the season and 0-11 in the conference.

The Bears cruised to victories in the first two sets opening up big leads before winning game one 25-17 and game two 25-9. Mercy rebounded in the third set, rallying from four points down late in the set to win the third game 25-22. NYIT built a 7-0 lead in the fourth set and never looked backed, winning 25-18.

Sophomore Emily Syers (East Meadow, N.Y.) dished out 42 assists, while senior Rebecca Lowe (Costa Mesa, Cal.) added 10 kills and had a .500 hitting percentage in the match.

The Bears return to action this Saturday as they travel to C.W. post for a tri-match. The Bears will take on the Pioneers at 11 a.m. and American International at 1 p.m.