Box Score
Box Score
HANOVER, N.H. – An early start time didn't slow down the Manhattan College volleyball team on Friday morning. The Jaspers (5-3) took the court at 10 a.m. for their first of two matches on the day, and defeated Providence (5-4) 25-18, 25-23, 25-20 at Leede Arena in the Big Green Invitational. Sydney Volovski (Oswego, Ill.) slammed 11 kills and hit a stellar .529 in the victory.
Manhattan's offense was the story of the first set. The Jaspers pounded 12 kills and made just two errors in 23 attempts to hit a solid .435 in the frame. A kill by Anna Kitlar (Kiel, Germany) midway through the set broke a 10-10 tie, and Teodora Peric (Chicago, Ill.) capped a 4-0 Manhattan run that made it 14-10 with a service ace. Providence scored the next three points to get back within one, 14-13, before a Volovski kill started a 10-5 Manhattan rally to end the set. Allie Yamashiro (Kapolei, Hawaii) wrapped up the 25-18 set win with an ace.
The Jaspers jumped out to a 4-2 lead in the second set, but Providence rallied to take a 13-9 advantage on a block by Nicole Fletcher and Marina Rose. However, Manhattan came storming back, getting three straight kills from Ellie Wiekamp (Laguna Niguel, Calif.), then another from Peric, to knot the score at 13-13. The Jaspers continued their rally, eventually opening up a 20-16 cushion, before the Friars forced a 21-21 deadlock. After the ninth and final tie of the set at 22-22, Manhattan claimed two straight points to reach set point, and the Jaspers captured the frame 25-23 to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
Things started off tight again in the third set, which featured nine ties and four lead changes. Providence used a 4-1 run to turn a 12-12 tie into a 16-13 advantage, but Manhattan responded by talking the next five points to take an 18-16 lead. The Jaspers maintained that advantage the rest of the way, and Manhattan reached match point on a Peric ace. Manhattan then finished off its second 3-0 victory of the year on a block by Wiekamp and Kitlar. The Jaspers won the third set by a 25-20 margin.
Volovski's 11 kills were a match-high. Kitlar contributed seven kills on .462 hitting to go along with two aces and three blocks, and Juliana Behrens (Honolulu, Hawaii) tallied eight kills. Peric distributed 28 assists and added three aces, as Manhattan finished with eight aces as a team. Yamashiro and Malia McGuinness (Kailua, Hawaii) each notched a team-best 11 digs, and Wiekamp posted 10 digs for the Jaspers, who outdug the Friars 41-36. As a team, Manhattan hit .245 (38-15-94) in the match.
Mackenzie Ziegler paced the Friars with 10 kills on .400 hitting. Kayla Fitzgerald and Colleen McCollom added six kills apiece, while Jordan Wiesler handed out 24 assists. Michelle Cruz tallied a team-high nine digs. Providence hit .134 (34-19-112) as a team.
In their second match of the day, the Jaspers will take on host Dartmouth (2-1) at 7:30 p.m. The Big Green will first play a 3 p.m. contest against Central Connecticut State.
