Box Score
LOUDONVILLE, N.Y. – The Manhattan College volleyball team climbed out of a two-sets-to-none hole to force a fifth set with Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) regular season champion Fairfield in the semifinals of the MAAC Tournament on Saturday. However, the top-seeded Stags (20-9) rallied to take the fifth set and move into the MAAC championship match with a 25-20, 25-10, 20-25, 20-25, 15-10 victory over the fourth-seeded Jaspers (20-14) at the Alumni Recreation Center.
After falling behind 2-0, the Jaspers found themselves in an early 4-2 hole in the third set. Manhattan tied it at 6-6 before Fairfield claimed the next two points to regain the lead, 8-6. However, Claire Van Dyk (New Richmond, Wis.) followed with a kill to spark a 7-1 Manhattan rally that put the Jaspers in front 13-9. The Stags forced a 17-17 deadlock, but Van Dyk and Jade Gray (Boise, Idaho) smashed kills on the next two points to make it 19-17 in favor of Manhattan. The Jaspers ended up claiming the third set by a 25-20 count to send the match into the fourth.
In the fourth set, Fairfield again built an early cushion, going up 3-1 before a 10-4 Manhattan rally put the Jaspers in front 11-7. After Manhattan extended its advantage to 18-12 on a Milena Janjusevic (Belgrade, Serbia) kill, the Stags went on an 8-2 run to pull within two, 20-18. Van Dyk responded with a kill and a service ace, though, then Olyvia Chaltas (Temecula, Calif.) ripped a kill to close out the set, 25-20, and set up a winner-take-all frame for a berth in the championship match.
Once again, the Stags quickly jumped in front in the final set. The Stags scored the first three points of the frame before Manhattan countered with a 4-1 rally to tie it at 4-4. After Fairfield went ahead 7-4, the Jaspers scored three of the next four points to get back within one, 8-7. However, Fairfield responded with a 6-2 run to reach match point at 14-9. A Van Dyk kill kept the Jaspers alive, but the Stags got a block from Oyinkansola Akinola and Sydney Buckley on the next point to give Fairfield the victory. The Stags took the final set by a 15-10 margin to earn their third win over Manhattan this season. It also marked the third straight season in which Fairfield defeated the Jaspers in the MAAC Tournament.
“I'm proud of the way we battled back, especially after dropping the first two sets,” Head Coach Mark Jones said. “Unfortunately, we weren't able to finish the job, but I give Fairfield a lot of credit. They definitely earned it.”
Fairfield scored the first three points of the match and extended that advantage to five points at 8-3. With the Stags up 15-10, four successive Manhattan kills—two by Chaltas and one each by Van Dyk and Janjusevic—brought the Jaspers within one at 15-14. Fairfield claimed the next two points to run the margin back to three, 17-14, but Manhattan responded with three of the next four, getting consecutive kills from Janjusevic to even the score at 18-18. However, Fairfield ended the set on a 7-2 rally and drew first blood with a 25-20 win.
It was all Stags in the second set. Fairfield raced out to an 8-2 advantage and led 13-4 before Manhattan won consecutive points for the only time in the period. However, the Stags claimed 10 of the next 12 points to extend its cushion to 23-8, and Fairfield took a 2-0 lead with a 25-10 set win.
“We made some good adjustments after the second set,” Jones said. “We just weren't able to execute as well as we would've liked in the fifth set, and that's ultimately what cost us.”
Van Dyk and Janjusevic paced the Jaspers with 18 kills apiece. Van Dyk added 25 digs and two aces in her final collegiate match, while Janjusevic completed a double-double with 18 digs. Gray also ended her career with a double-double, posting 42 assists and 10 digs to go along with four blocks. Ivana Kostic (Grocka, Serbia), meanwhile, tallied six blocks. Allie Yamashiro (Kapolei, Hawaii) and Alyssa Rehrer (Lorton, Va.) each recorded 20 digs, as the Jaspers outdug the Stags 98-96. As a team, Manhattan hit .145 (51 kills, 24 errors, 186 attempts) in the match.
For Fairfield, Megan O'Sullivan led the way with 18 kills, while Megan Theiller finished with 16 kills and 15 digs. Skyler Day also had a double-double with 15 kills and 22 digs, and Akinola tallied 11 kills and six blocks. Buckley, meanwhile, posted 57 assists and 13 digs for the Stags. Taylor Rudeen collected a team-high 23 digs to go along with 16 digs by Mallory Bechtold. Fairfield hit .187 (67-29-203) as a team.
Manhattan won 20 matches and reached the semifinal round of the MAAC Tournament for the third straight season. The Jaspers end their campaign as the NCAA leaders in aces (242).