Lady Jaspers Cruise Past Central Connecticut State, 3-0

Box Score

BRONX, N.Y. - Last weekend, the Manhattan College volleyball team needed five sets to knock off Central Connecticut State.  On Friday afternoon at Rose Hill Gym, only three sets were necessary, as the Lady Jaspers (3-4) posted a 25-21, 25-20, 25-23 victory over the Blue Devils (1-3) in the Rose Hill Classic.  Rita Welsh (Collegeville, Pa.) slammed 13 kills and hit a .500 (two errors, 22 attempts) in the win.

Manhattan scored the first four points of the match, including back-to-back service aces by Laura Bellotti (Dix Hills, N.Y.), to seize control of the opening set.  After a kill by Diane Strutner (San Jose, Calif.) gave the Lady Jaspers a 21-14 advantage, the Blue Devils used a five-point run to pull within two points at 21-19.  That's as close as Central Connecticut State would get, however, as an attack error and another Strutner kill ran Manhattan's lead back to four and prompted a Blue Devils timeout.  Welsh pounded a kill on the Lady Jaspers' second set point opportunity to seal a 25-21 set win.

The second set featured 12 ties and five lead changes, and neither side was able to build a lead of more than two points in the early going.  Manhattan took its first lead of the set when an ace by Jayne Timo (Holbrook, N.Y.) capped a 3-0 run that made it 10-9 in favor of the Lady Jaspers.  After the Blue Devils went back in front by a 15-14 margin, a Bridget Call (Roberts, Wisc.) ace finished off a 5-1 Manhattan run that put the Lady Jaspers in front 19-16.  Another Timo ace increased Manhattan's lead to 23-19 and prompted a Central Connecticut State timeout.  The Lady Jaspers won the set, 25-20, to take a 2-0 lead in the match.

Central Connecticut State scored the first point of the third set, but the Lady Jaspers rallied for the next four to take a lead they would not relinquish.  The Lady Jaspers increased their lead to 9-5 on the strength of a 3-0 run before the Blue Devils fought back to cut the margin to one, 15-14.  Manhattan scored the next point to regain a two-point cushion, but Central Connecticut State rallied back each time and pulled within one on three different occasions.  Manhattan reached match point at 24-21 before consecutive Central Connecticut State points trimmed the lead to one and prompted a Lady Jaspers timeout.  Following the timeout, Welsh slammed her eighth kill of the set to cap a 25-23 win that clinched Manhattan's first 3-0 victory of the season.

Welsh was the only Manhattan player with double-digit kills in the match.  Strutner finished with eight kills and tied for the match-high with 12 digs, while Jaci Rahey (West Milford, N.J.) and Aurore Kullak (Beloeil, Belgium) each tallied six kills.  Julie Bies (Massapequa, N.Y.) also had 12 digs, as the Lady Jaspers outdug the Blue Devils 42-38.  Bellotti registered 30 assists and seven digs to go along with three aces.  As a team, Manhattan hit .188 (37-18-101) in the victory.

Jamie Baumert, who had 16 kills and nine blocks in the previous meeting between the teams, was held to 12 kills and two blocks on Friday.  Baumert hit .524 in the match, making just one error in 21 swings.  Sara DeLacey tallied eight kills, while Kaitlin Petrella posted a team-high 11 digs.  Amanda Bayer distributed a team-high 22 assists and Danielle Gasser dished out 11 assists.  Central Connecticut State hit .120 (35-22-108) as a team.