RIVERDALE, N.Y. - The Manhattan College volleyball team entered Sunday's match looking to get back on the winning track after losing four in a row. The Lady Jaspers (7-10, 2-4 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) got off to a good start, winning the first set and losing the second 25-23, but in the end came up just short, dropping a 23-25, 25-23, 25-17, 25-10 decision to Canisius (9-9, 5-1 MAAC) at Draddy Gymnasium.
There were 12 ties and seven lead changes in a highly competitive first set. Canisius scored the first three points of the match and led 6-3 before a 4-0 Manhattan run gave the Lady Jaspers a 7-6 lead. After Manhattan extended its advantage to 13-11, Canisius rallied for the next three points to go back in front, 14-13. The Lady Jaspers took a 17-16 lead on a kill by Alexa Lampasona (Remensburg, N.Y.), but the Griffs scored six of the next eight points to open up a 22-19 advantage. A kill by Kelsey Huntoon (Monroe, Mich.) started a 3-0 Manhattan rally that tied the score at 22-22, but Canisius won the next point to regain the lead. After a Canisius error tied the score again at 23-23, Jaci Rahey (West Milford, N.J.) pounded a kill to bring the Lady Jaspers to set point. Following a Canisius timeout, Aurore Kullak (Beloeil, Belgium) slammed one down to give Manhattan the first set, 25-23.
Manhattan jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the second set and eventually extended that advantage to 14-9. However, the Griffs countered with a 12-5 run to take a 21-19 lead. The Lady Jaspers got a kill from Diane Strutner (San Jose, Calif.), then a block by Rahey and Huntoon to tie the score at 21-21, but Canisius scored the next two points to go back ahead. The Griffs won the set, 25-23, to even the match at one set apiece. Both teams hit well in the second set. Canisius made just one error in the set and hit .372 (17 kills, 43 attempts). Manhattan, meanwhile, hit .340 (21-4-50) in the second set.
It was Canisius that took the early lead in the third set, as the Griffs opened up a 5-1 advantage. However, the Lady Jaspers responded with a 6-2 rally to tie the score at 7-7. The score was deadlocked again at 13-13 before Canisius used an 11-3 run to reach set point. The Griffs continued their impressive hitting in the third set, hitting .342 (16-3-38) en route to a 25-17 win that gave them a 2-1 lead in the match.
The Lady Jaspers raced out to a 3-0 edge in the fourth set, but Canisius rallied for the next four points to seize control. After a Rahey kill brought Manhattan within 8-7, the Griffs scored 17 of the final 20 points, wrapping up the victory with an easy 25-10 set win. Canisius hit above .300 once again in the fourth set, hitting .308 (12-4-26) to Manhattan's -.188 (4-10-32).
Rahey pounded 16 kills to lead the Lady Jaspers. Strutner had a double-double with 12 kills and a team-high 13 digs, while Lampasona also notched 12 kills. Jamie Collareta (Islip Terrace, N.Y.) also posted a double-double with 27 assists and 10 digs. Kullak registered 12 digs and Julie Bies (Massapequa, N.Y.) recorded 10 digs. Huntoon tallied eight digs to go along with four blocks. As a team, Manhattan hit .156 (50-25-160) in the match.
Samantha Good posted 23 kills on .400 hitting for Canisius. She also tallied six blocks, as the Griffs outblocked the Lady Jaspers 10-4. Layne Adams had 15 kills and hit .483, while Emily Elek notched a double-double with 13 kills and 16 digs. Janelle Davis dished out a match-high 39 assists and Sydney Palka added 14 assists. Canisius outdug Manhattan 72-65, led by Allyson Severyn's match-high 22 digs. Severyn also recorded three service aces. Renee Lettow registered 10 digs and Jasmine Brennan contributed six blocks for the Griffs. Overall, Canisius hit .297 (60-16-148) as a team.
Up next, the Lady Jaspers visit Army (10-9) for a 7 p.m. matchup on Wednesday. Manhattan resumes MAAC play with a pair of matches next weekend. The Lady Jaspers visit Siena (4-11, 3-3 MAAC) at 2 p.m. on Saturday, then host Loyola (7-13, 1-5 MAAC) for "Lee National Denim Day" next Sunday at 3 p.m.
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