Venture capitalists are more bullish on companies in the Garden State than a year ago, based on data from a quarterly report released Friday.

During the first quarter of 2015, venture capitalists made 11 deals totaling more than $96 million to New Jersey businesses — a big surge from the same quarter last year when investors completed five deals amounting to $19.6 million. The funding total from the first quarter nearly matched the level from the first period two years ago.