Box Score
RIVERDALE, N.Y. - The Manhattan College volleyball team entered Sunday afternoon's match desperately in need of a win. It wasn't easy, but the Lady Jaspers got exactly what they needed. Manhattan (6-11, 2-4 MAAC) won the first two sets, then held off a Loyola comeback en route to a 25-23, 25-22, 18-25, 16-25, 15-13 victory over the Greyhounds (9-12, 4-2 MAAC) at Draddy Gymnasium. The win, which came on National Denim Day for breast cancer awareness, snapped Manhattan's five-match losing streak.
The Lady Jaspers stormed out of the gate in the first set, jumping out to an 8-4 lead. Manhattan maintained control for much of the set. After Loyola pulled within three at 19-16, the Lady Jaspers responded with a 4-1 run to bring their lead back to six points at 23-17. The Greyhounds claimed the next three points, prompting a Manhattan timeout, before a Loyola service error gave the Lady Jaspers their first set point at 24-20. Loyola fought off three set point opportunities before the Lady Jaspers finally finished off the set on their fourth, as Jaci Rahey (West Milford, N.J.) slammed a kill to seal a 25-23 win. Manhattan hit an impressive .360 (12 kills, three errors, 25 attempts) in the first set.
After a Rahey kill put the Lady Jaspers ahead 9-7 in the second set, Loyola's head coach was issued a red card, resulting in a point penalty. The free point sparked a 5-0 Manhattan rally that increased the Lady Jaspers' lead to 14-7. Loyola scored four of the next five points to trim its deficit to 15-11, but Manhattan responded with a 6-0 run to push its advantage back to 10 at 21-11. The Greyhounds, however, refused to concede the set, as Loyola rallied for 11 of the next 13 points to pull within one, 23-22. Diane Strutner (San Jose, Calif.) then pounded a kill to give Manhattan a set point, and the Lady Jaspers only needed one opportunity to finish off a 25-22 win.
Manhattan scored the first three points of the third set and led 5-2 before Loyola charged back to force a 5-5 tie. The Lady Jaspers responded with three straight points to regain an 8-5 advantage, but Loyola rallied to tie it at 11-11. After Rahey slammed a kill to break a 12-12 tie, Loyola went on an 8-1 run to take a 20-14 advantage. Manhattan took the next two points to trim its deficit to 20-16, but the Greyhounds held on for a 25-18 win to send the match into a fourth set. Loyola hit .300 (18-6-40) in the third set.
Loyola seized control of the fourth set early on, as three successive blocks ignited a 9-1 Loyola run that turned a 2-2 tie into an 11-3 Greyhounds lead. Manhattan scored three of the next four points to get back within six at 12-6 before the Greyhounds rallied to bring their lead back to 11 points at 21-10. Loyola reached set point at 24-13, and Manhattan fought off the first three before the Greyhounds finished off the set, 25-16, to send the match into a decisive frame.
In a tight fifth set, the score was tied five times in the first 10 points. Manhattan built the first two-point lead at 7-5, but Loyola rallied for the next three points to go in front 8-7. The Lady Jaspers scored back-to-back points to regain the lead before a 3-0 Loyola rally gave the Greyhounds their first two-point lead of the set, 11-9. Manhattan responded for five of the next six points, and reached match point when Aurore Kullak's (Beloeil, Belgium) service ace made it 14-12. After a kill by Nina Camaioni made it 14-13, Rita Welsh (Collegeville, Pa.) pounded one home to finish off the set, 15-13, and snap Manhattan's losing streak.
Strutner tallied a double-double with a team-high 15 kills and 13 digs. Welsh added 12 kills on .296 hitting to go along with seven blocks. Rahey recorded nine kills, while Kullak notched eight kills and eight digs. Laura Bellotti (Dix Hills, N.Y.) dished out 41 assists to go along with seven digs and three blocks, and Julie Bies (Massapequa, N.Y.) finished with a team-high 18 digs. As a team, Manhattan hit .167 (49-23-156) in the match.
Nina Camaioni slammed 29 kills and added 11 digs for the Greyhounds. Kathryn Dircks also had a double-double with 17 kills and a match-high 19 digs, while Karlee Woodward posted 14 kills on .407 hitting and eight blocks. Aubrey Kirven distributed 53 assists to go along with 12 digs and six kills on .667 hitting. Brittany Born tallied 18 digs and Janet Pressler had 10 digs, as the Greyhounds outdug the Lady Jaspers 74-58. Loyola also outblocked Manhattan 13-9 and hit .195 (70-36-174) as a team.
The Lady Jaspers now hit the road for their next five contests. Manhattan visits Marist (9-8, 3-3 MAAC) on Friday at 7 p.m., then heads to Siena (6-8, 4-2 MAAC) for a 2 p.m. matchup next Sunday.
Fans can still donate to National Denim Day by visiting www.denimday.com or Manhattan's team page.
To follow Manhattan Athletics on Twitter visit Twitter.com/GoJaspers and on Facebook.com search "Manhattan Jaspers."
