Box Score
LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. - For a while, it looked like the Manhattan College volleyball team would cruise to an easy three-set victory in its Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) opener on Saturday. Then Rider stormed back and made it a match. In the end, however, the Lady Jaspers (5-5, 1-0 MAAC) held on for a 25-19, 25-13, 27-29, 20-25, 15-13 victory over the Broncs (1-9, 0-1 MAAC) at Alumni Gymnasium. With the victory, the Lady Jaspers extended their winning streak to four straight.
Rider jumped out to an early 6-2 advantage in the first set, but Manhattan scored the next three points to make it 6-5. The Broncs extended their lead to 11-7 before the Lady Jaspers went on a 6-2 run to knot the score at 13-13. After the score was tied for the seventh time at 17-17, Manhattan rallied for eight of the final 10 points of the set, capping off a 25-19 win on a kill by LaKell Havens (St. George, Utah).
Manhattan then dominated the second set. The Lady Jaspers used an 11-4 run to turn a 3-3 score into a 14-7 edge. After a 7-0 rally pushed Manhattan's lead to 23-10, the Lady Jaspers reached set point on another Havens kill. It took the Lady Jaspers two opportunities to close out the set, but the 25-13 triumph gave Manhattan a 2-0 lead in the match. The Lady Jaspers hit a stellar .351 in the second set, pounding 16 kills and making just three errors in 37 total attempts.
The sides traded rallies to open the third set. Manhattan took a quick 3-0 lead, but Rider stormed back to pull in front, 6-4. After the Lady Jaspers tied the score at 10-10, the Broncs again responded, retaking the lead, 17-14. With Rider leading 20-18, Manhattan rallied for the next three points, reclaiming the lead for the first time since early in the set on a kill by Alexa Lampasona (Remensburg, N.Y.).
Those three points ignited a 6-1 rally that brought the Lady Jaspers to match point at 24-21. Rider fought off all three match points, tying the score at 24-24, but Manhattan got a fourth opportunity when a kill by Maddie Heck (Corte Madera, Calif.) made it 25-24. The Broncs scored the next point to again pull even, then saved another match point at 26-25 before finally earning a set point of their own at 27-26. This time, it was Manhattan that extended the set on a kill by Jaci Rahey (West Milford, N.J.). Rider got to set point again at 28-27, and the Broncs won the next point to extend the match.
Just as Manhattan dominated the second set, the Broncs controlled the fourth set. The sides traded the first 14 points before Rider used a 6-2 rally to go in front, 15-9. Manhattan scored six of the next seven points to pull within one, but the Broncs responded with a 7-2 spurt to extend their lead back to six points at 23-17. Rider won the set, 25-20, to send the match into a decisive frame.
There were three early ties in the final set before a 5-0 Manhattan run gave the Lady Jaspers a 9-4 lead. Rider got within one at 11-10, but Manhattan scored two of the next three points to get within two points of victory. The Broncs continued their rally, tying the score at 13-13 before the Lady Jaspers reached match point for the sixth time. This time, Manhattan wouldn't be denied, as Havens reached up and blocked Alex Chapla's attempt to seal the 15-13 set win and five-set victory.
"We really held our composure in the fifth set and fought for every point, and in the end, we pulled out a good win," Head Coach Mark Jones said. "It's a sign of a good team that we were able to battle back after dropping a couple of sets. It was important to start conference play with a victory."
Havens finished with a career-high 19 kills and four blocks, including the solo stuff on match point. Rahey added 17 kills, while Heck tallied 10 kills and eight digs. Diane Strutner (San Jose, Calif.) and Jamie Collareta (Islip Terrace, N.Y.) each notched a double-double. Strutner had 14 kills and 20 digs, while Collareta posted 53 assists and 20 digs. Julie Bies (Massapequa, N.Y.) registered 30 digs to lead five Lady Jaspers in double figures, as Manhattan outdug Rider 115-77. Kelsey Huntoon (Monroe, Mich.) recorded 13 digs and Aurore Kullak (Beloeil, Belgium) had 12. As a team, Manhattan hit .202 (69-28-203) in the match.
Kristy Love had 17 kills on .429 hitting for Rider. Katelyn Thompson added 13 kills to go along with four service aces and four blocks. Chapla also reached double figures in kills with 10. Amanda Piccolini recorded a double-double with 49 assists and 16 digs, while Elyse Grassmuck tallied a team-high 26 digs and three aces. Stephanie Nagy posted eight blocks, as the Broncs outblocked the Lady Jaspers 11-6. The Broncs hit .152 (54-23-204) as a team.
After playing their first 10 matches on the road, the Lady Jaspers finally open their home schedule on Sunday afternoon, when Saint Peter's (4-8, 0-1 MAAC) visits Draddy Gymnasium for a 2 p.m. showdown. The match will be webcast live on www.gojaspers.com as a part of the JasperVision package.
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