Box Score
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - On Friday night, the Manhattan College volleyball team opened the Harvard Invitational with a matchup against the host Crimson. Unfortunately, the Jaspers (1-6) were unable to rebound after dropping the first set, as Harvard (1-3) notched a 25-18, 25-14, 25-14 victory at the Malkin Athletic Center.
The teams traded points early in the first set. There were seven ties and two lead changes before Harvard used a 10-3 run to turn a 10-9 advantage into a 20-12 cushion. The Crimson increased their margin to 23-15, but the Jaspers scored three of the next four points to make it 24-18. However, a kill by Kathleen Wallace on the next point gave Harvard the set, 25-18.
Harvard continued its spurt early in the second set, jumping out to a 15-4 advantage. Manhattan responded by claiming seven of the next 10 points, pulling within 18-11 on a Julie Bies (Massapequa, N.Y.) service ace. That's as close as the Jaspers would get, though, as the Crimson took the next three points to bring the margin back to 10 at 21-11. Harvard took a 2-0 lead in the match by winning the second set, 25-14.
Manhattan took an early 2-1 lead in the third set before Harvard rallied to go in front 10-6. The Jaspers won the next three points, getting two kills from Mariana Furquim (Curibita, Brazil) and another from Ellie Wiekamp (Laguna Niguel, Calif.) to get back within one, 10-9, and force a Harvard timeout. Following the timeout, the Crimson went on a 14-2 run to reach match point. Manhattan fought off three match points before the Crimson finished off the set, 25-14, and the match, 3-0.
Furquim led the Jaspers with six kills, eight digs and two blocks. Wiekamp added four kills. Hollegn Henderson (Long Beach, Calif.) handed out 15 assists, while Bies notched seven digs. As a team, Manhattan was held to -.082 (19 kills, 27 errors, 98 attempts) hitting.
Taylor Docter had a double-double for Harvard, posting 13 kills and 10 digs. She also tallied four aces. Wallace registered 11 kills and hit .500, while Caroline Walters hit .714 with six kills. Beth Kinsella dished out 24 assists and Hannah Schmidt recorded 12 assists and nine digs. Kristen Casey notched a match-high 14 digs, as the Crimson outdug the Jaspers 47-29. Teresa Skelly added five blocks. Harvard hit .227 (39-19-88) as a team.
Manhattan concludes the tournament with a pair of matches on Saturday. The Jaspers face Division I newcomer Northern Kentucky (8-0) at 10 a.m., then meet Providence (1-10) at 4 p.m. Manhattan posted a 3-1 victory over the Friars last season at Draddy Gymnasium.
