Box Score
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – In a five-set classic that saw Niagara battle back from two sets down and fight off six match points in the fourth, the third-seeded Manhattan College volleyball team (21-11) held off the sixth-seeded Purple Eagles (13-17) 25-22, 25-18, 16-25, 28-30, 15-13 in the quarterfinals of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championships from the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex's HP Pavilion on Thursday. With the win, their sixth straight, the Jaspers moved into the MAAC semifinals for the second consecutive year.
The Jaspers held a 2-1 sets lead when they opened up cushions of 9-4 and 16-11 in the fourth. Niagara rallied to tie the score at 18-18 before Manhattan responded with six of the next nine points. After a kill by Claire Van Dyk (New Richmond, Wis.) set up match point at 24-21, the Purple Eagles took the next three points to tie it at 24-24. The Jaspers earned another match point chance on a block by Van Dyk and Marissa Behrens (Honolulu, Hawaii), then had opportunities at 26-25 and 27-26, but Niagara evened the score each time. The Purple Eagles reached set point for the first time at 28-27. This time it was Manhattan's turn to tie the score, as Malia McGuinness (Kailua, Hawaii) hammered home a kill to create a 28-28 deadlock. However, Niagara claimed the next two points to take the set, 30-28, and force a decisive fifth frame.
Niagara carried its momentum into the final set, opening up an early 5-1 advantage. Manhattan pulled within 7-6, but the Purple Eagles scored the next two points to build a 9-6 cushion. However, a Behrens kill on the next point sparked a 4-0 Manhattan run, and the Jaspers took their first lead of the set when a McGuinness kill made it 10-9. The sides traded the next five points before Manhattan rallied for two in a row to break a 12-12 tie and earn another match point chance. After Niagara took the next point, Van Dyk put away the set, 15-13, to clinch a 3-2 Manhattan triumph and move her team into the semifinals.
“We've always been a fifth-set team since I've been at Manhattan,” said Head Coach Mark Jones, who picked up his 100th victory at the helm of the Jaspers, in a post-match interview with ESPN3. “We've always put or best game together in the fifth set. I think today we made a few less errors at the end, and that was most important.”
“I knew we were going to come back and get it,” McGuinness told ESPN3 after the match. “It's hard to come back in the fifth and take it after they just beat you in the last two, so I'm happy we kept our composure and figured it out.”
There were eight ties and four lead changes in an evenly-matched first set. Manhattan built early cushions of 6-3 and 10-7 before Niagara rallied to force a 14-14 tie. The Jaspers scored the next two points to go up 16-14, but the Purple Eagles responded with a 5-1 run to take a 19-17 advantage. However, Manhattan countered with a 7-1 spurt to get to set point, and a kill by Sydney Volovski (Oswego, Ill.) sealed a 25-22 set win for the Jaspers.
The Purple Eagles jumped out to a 10-7 lead in the second set before a kill by Jade Gray (Boise, Idaho) started a 6-1 rally that gave the Jaspers a 13-11 advantage. Manhattan then used a 7-0 run to turn a 15-13 cushion into a 22-13 edge. A Van Dyk kill brought the Jaspers to set point at 24-17, and a kill by Behrens wrapped up a 25-18 win that put Manhattan up 2-0 in the best-of-five.
After the sides traded the first 10 points of the third set, the Purple Eagles went on a 5-0 run to open up a 10-5 lead. Niagara's advantage reached seven points at 20-13 before a Van Dyk kill started a 3-0 rally that cut Manhattan's deficit to four, 20-16. However, the Purple Eagles captured the final five points of the set to claim a 25-16 triumph and extend the match.
Jones joined Pete Volkert (1997-2003) as the only two coaches in program history to reach the 100-win plateau.
McGuinness had her seventh consecutive double-double for the Jaspers, finishing with 22 kills and 20 digs. Van Dyk recorded her 1,000th career kill in the match and ended up with 19 kills and 19 digs in the victory. Volovski added 10 kills, while Gray notched 49 assists and 14 digs. Allie Yamashiro (Kapolei, Hawaii), who came into the contest two digs shy of establishing a new single-season school record, registered a match-high 27, making her the first player in program history to tally 600 digs in a season (her current total is 624). Sarah Haselhorst (Naperville, Ill.), meanwhile, contributed 14 digs in the victory. Manhattan hit .164 (61 kills, 26 errors, 214 attempts) as a team.
Alex Stone led Niagara with 19 kills on .395 hitting, and she also tallied five blocks. Nicole Matheis, meanwhile, posted 14 kills and 23 digs for the Purple Eagles. Alexis Gray finished with 49 assists, 23 digs and four blocks, while Rylee Hunt collected 26 digs to go along with five assists. Allison Reis added 14 digs, as Niagara outdug Manhattan 106-101. As a team, the Purple Eagles hit .163 (61-27-208) in the match.
Manhattan, which won its MAAC Tournament opener for the first time since 2006, will face second-seeded Siena (17-14) in a semifinal matchup that will be broadcast live on ESPN3 at 8 p.m. on Friday. The Jaspers will advance to the MAAC Championship Match for the first time since 2003 with a victory.