Manhattan University Athletics

EASTON, PA – What a difference a week can make.  After dropping its first 10 matches of the season, the Manhattan College volleyball team has now won four straight.  The Jaspers (4-10) clinched the Lafayette Invitational tournament title with a 25-19, 25-23, 13-25, 25-22 victory over NJIT (7-7) at the Kirby Sports Center on Saturday evening.  Milena Janjusevic (Belgrade, Serbia) had her third double-double in as many matches to earn a place on the All-Tournament Team alongside Allie Yamashiro (Kapolei, HI).

Janjusevic finished with 13 kills, 17 digs and four blocks in the victory.  She averaged 3.83 kills and 3.58 digs per set in the tournament.  Yamashiro also collected 17 digs, giving her 56 in three tournament matches, an average of 4.67 per set.

Sandra Lozanova (Pernik, Bulgaria) tallied 11 kills and seven digs against NJIT, while Zoe Lindsey (McHenry, IL) distributed 41 assists to go along with six digs.  Marissa Behrens (Honolulu, HI) had six kills on .385 hitting and added five blocks.  Alyssa Rehrer (Lorton, VA), meanwhile, served five aces while also recording seven digs.  As a team, Manhattan hit .190 (46 kills, 20 errors, 137 attempts) in the match.

In the first set, Manhattan built a 10-6 lead before NJIT responded with a 4-1 rally to pull within one, 11-10.  Behrens followed with a kill to start an 8-4 Manhattan run to give the Jaspers a 19-14 advantage and force an NJIT timeout.  The Highlanders pulled within two at 20-18, but Manhattan scored five of the final six points in the period, and a Janjusevic kill finished off a 25-19 set win.

There were 16 ties and six lead changes in an extremely tight second set.  NJIT used a 3-1 spurt to turn a 12-12 deadlock into a 15-13 advantage, but Manhattan countered with a 6-1 run to go up 19-16.  After NJIT rallied to tie it at 23-23, Olyvia Chaltas (Temecula, CA) smacked a kill to give Manhattan its first set point opportunity.  Rehrer then served an ace to close out the frame, 25-23, and put the Jaspers up 2-0 in the match.

NJIT cruised to a 25-13 win in the third set.  The Highlanders hit .650 (14-1-20) in the frame and only once allowed the Jaspers to score two points in a row.  NJIT opened up a 15-6 advantage, then, after Manhattan pulled within 19-12, ended the stanza on a 6-1 spurt to extend the match.

Manhattan quickly rebounded in the fourth set, jumping out to an early 5-1 cushion.  NJIT countered with a 5-1 run of its own, though, to tie the score at 6-6.  The score was still knotted at 9-9 when the Highlanders went on a 9-3 spurt to go up 18-12.  However, Manhattan stormed back on the strength of Rehrer's serving.  She had four aces in a five-point span, as the Jaspers used a 10-1 rally to regain the lead, 22-19.  A Janjusevic call brought Manhattan to match point at 24-21, and the Jaspers closed out their fourth successive 3-1 win with a 25-22 fourth-set triumph.

Katarzyna Klocek and Tess Albyn each had 11 kills to lead four Highlanders in double-figures.  Klocek also recorded 14 digs and four blocks.  Anneka Harris and Mikalah Hughes both finished with 10 kills and four blocks, while Weronika Wiezek finished with nine kills and 13 digs.  Anna Rodrigues, meanwhile, registered 43 assists, nine digs and three blocks for NJIT.  Adriana Nieto collected 17 digs, as the Highlanders outdug the Jaspers 65-58.  NJIT hit .185 (56-28-151) as a team.