Box Score
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - The Manhattan College volleyball team looked to carry the momentum of its five-set win over Loyola on Sunday night into a season-long five-match road trip, which got underway on Friday night. The Lady Jaspers (6-12, 2-5 MAAC) took a set, but Marist proved too strong in the end, as the Red Foxes (10-8, 4-3 MAAC) posted a 25-15, 23-25, 25-22, 25-21 victory in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) action at the McCann Center.
After the sides traded leads in the early going, Marist broke open the first set with a 6-0 run that turned an 8-7 deficit into a 13-8 lead. Marist controlled the set from there, using some outstanding hitting to cruise to a 25-15 win. The Red Foxes hit an exceptional .708 in the set, pounding 18 kills and committing just one error in 24 attempts.
The second set began much the same way as the first, as Marist used a 3-0 rally to take the first two-point advantage for either side, 12-10. Manhattan rallied for six of the next eight points to go in front, 16-14, but the Red Foxes responded with an 8-2 run to regain the lead, 22-18. After an Emily Brosky service error made it 22-19, a Diane Strutner (San Jose, Calif.) service ace brought the Lady Jaspers back within two, 22-20. Marist scored the next point to bring its lead back to three points, but Manhattan scored the final five points of the set and capped the 25-23 win on Jaci Rahey's (West Milford, N.J.) kill.
A Strutner ace gave Manhattan a 13-9 lead in the third set, but Marist responded with eight of the next nine points to go up 17-14. A Rahey kill brought Manhattan back within two, but the Lady Jaspers were never able to put together enough of a rally to chip away at the Marist lead, as the teams traded the final 15 points of the set. The Red Foxes took a 2-1 lead in the match with a 25-22 set win.
In the fourth set, Marist jumped out to an early 7-4 lead. After a Strutner kill made the score 9-6, the Red Foxes went on a 6-2 run to increase their lead to seven points, 14-7. A 4-1 Manhattan rally pulled the Lady Jaspers back within three at 15-12, but Marist again responded, extending its lead back to five points at 19-14. The Red Foxes got within two points of clinching the match at 23-18, but the Lady Jaspers rallied for the next three points to get back within two, 23-21. However, back-to-back kills by Leeann Harridsleff put away the set, 25-21, and gave Marist a 3-1 match victory.
Strutner finished one dig shy of a double-double for Manhattan. She tallied nine digs and a team-high 16 kills. Rahey added 11 kills and five blocks for the Lady Jaspers, while Rita Welsh (Collegeville, Pa.), the current MAAC Defensive Player of the Week, recorded seven blocks (including three solos) to go along with eight kills on .500 hitting. Laura Bellotti (Dix Hills, N.Y.) distributed 38 assists and Julie Bies (Massapequa, N.Y.) notched a match-high 18 digs. As a team, the Lady Jaspers hit .188 (42-20-117) in the match.
Joanna Foss and Alexandra Schultze each had 16 kills on .343 hitting for Marist. Harridsleff added 13 kills on .308 hitting, while Lindsey Schmid notched nine kills, two aces and three blocks. Dawn Jan dished out 54 assists and Brosky tallied 17 digs for the Red Foxes, who outdug the Lady Jaspers 44-36. Marist hit .290 (59-21-131) as a team.
The Lady Jaspers continue their five-match road trip with a visit to four-time defending MAAC champion Siena (6-8, 4-2 MAAC) at 2 p.m. on Sunday. Siena has won seven straight against Manhattan, including both matches last season. Live video of the match will be available at Siena's website.
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