Lady Jaspers Drop Season Opener In Five Sets

Box Score

RIVERDALE, N.Y. - The new-look Manhattan College volleyball team took the floor for the first time on Tuesday night, and if the first match is any indication, Lady Jasper fans are in for an exciting 2009 season.  Manhattan (0-1) came back from a two sets-to-none deficit before ultimately falling just short, 25-17, 26-24, 17-25, 23-25, 15-13, against Army (3-1) in the season opener at Draddy Gymnasium.

The sides traded the first 16 points of the match before Army finally built the first two-point lead for either team at 10-8.  Army took control of the set from there, scoring 12 of 16 points to jump out to a 20-12 advantage.  Manhattan pulled within 23-17, but back-to-back kills by Ariana Markus and Fabiola Castro sealed a 25-17 opening-set win for the Black Knights.  Army hit .303 (13 kills, three errors, 33 attempts) as a team in the first set.

Manhattan scored the first two points of the second set before Army came back to tie it at 6-6.  The Lady Jaspers scored the next three points to pull ahead 9-6, and Manhattan held the lead for much of the middle portion of the set.  Army again tied the score at 20-20 before consecutive blocks put the Lady Jaspers up by two and prompted a Black Knights timeout.  Army recorded the next three points out of the timeout, forcing Manhattan to call timeout with the Black Knights in front 23-22.  Manhattan responded with the next two points to reach set point, but Army closed the frame on a 3-0 run to capture a 26-24 set win and head to the locker room with a 2-0 match lead.

When the teams returned to the floor for the third set, the Lady Jaspers seized control, jumping out to a 7-2 lead.  Army came back within 9-7 before Manhattan used a 10-2 to increase its advantage to 19-9.  The Black Knights went on another minor run to pull within 21-16, but Manhattan scored four of the final five points in the set to seal a 25-17 win and send the match into the fourth.  As a team, the Lady Jaspers hit .440 (12-1-25) in the fourth set, compared to Army's .086 (12-9-35).

The fourth set was as tightly contested as the second.  Army led for most of the early-going before a 6-1 Manhattan run turned a 13-9 deficit into a 15-14 lead.  After ties at 15-15, 16-16 and 17-17, a kill by Diane Strutner (San Jose, Calif.) and a block by Casey Tidwell (Redlands, Calif.) put the Lady Jaspers in front by two, 19-17.  The Black Knights scored four straight points to go back in front, 23-21, but a block by Rita Welsh (Collegeville, Pa.) and Aurore Kullak (Beloeil, Belgium) sparked a set-ending 4-0 Manhattan run that gave the Lady Jaspers a 25-23 set victory and sent the match into a decisive fifth set.

Manhattan carried its momentum into the start of the final set, going ahead 5-1 on Kullak's service ace, but Army fought back to force a 6-6 tie.  The Lady Jaspers scored the next two points to go into the side switch leading 8-6 before the Black Knights again responded to force an 8-8 tie.  After a Kullak kill gave Manhattan an 11-10 lead, three straight Army points, including back-to-back blocks, put the Black Knights in front, 13-11.  Army reached match point when a Rachel Willis block made it 14-12, and the Black Knights closed out the set, 15-13, to capture the match, 3-2.

Welsh paced the Lady Jaspers with 14 kills on .310 hitting.  She also tallied a team-high four blocks.  Kullak and Jaci Rahey (West Milford, N.J.) each posted 10 kills, and Laura Bellotti (Dix Hills, N.Y.) notched a double-double with 39 assists and 18 digs in her Manhattan debut.  Strutner had eight kills to go along with a team-high 19 digs, as the Lady Jaspers outdug the Black Knights 82-73.  Julie Bies (Massapequa, N.Y.) registered 16 digs and Jayne Timo (Holbrook, N.Y.) added 13.  As a team, Manhattan hit .181 (55-25-166) in the match.

Army was paced by Rachel Dunn, who posted a double-double with 14 kills and 10 digs.  Castro (11 kills, 10 digs) and Maureen Bannon (45 assists, 13 digs) each recorded a double-double for the Black Knights, as well.  Liberty McIntee returned a match-high 22 digs, while Willis tallied eight blocks to go along with 11 kills.  The Black Knights hit .164 (65-33-195) as a team.