WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - In a hotly-contested match that featured 25 ties and 10 lead changes, the Manhattan College volleyball team took on host William & Mary in the first round of the Tribe Invitational on Friday night. It was the Tribe (2-3) who won the big points, however, as William & Mary came away with a 25-22, 25-23, 23-25, 25-22 triumph over the Jaspers (1-3) at Kaplan Arena. The match was Mark Jones's 100th as Manhattan's head coach.
William & Mary took an early 6-2 lead in the first set, but the Jaspers stormed back to knot the score at 12-12. The Tribe scored the next two points to go back in front, 14-12, and eventually pushed the margin to four points at 23-19. Deandra Anderson (Durham, N.C.) followed with a kill, then Sydney Volovski (Oswego, Ill.) slammed consecutive kills to bring Manhattan within one, 23-22. However, William & Mary took the next two points to win the set, 25-22.
The second set, featuring 12 ties and five lead changes, was just as competitive as the first. William & Mary pulled in front 3-1 before Manhattan rallied to take a 7-5 advantage. The Tribe scored the next three points to regain the lead, but the Jaspers responded with an 8-4 run to build a 15-12 cushion. After the Tribe rallied to tie it at 19-19, a William & Mary service error followed by a Mariana Furquim (Curibita, Brazil) kill gave the lead back to Manhattan, 21-19. However, William & Mary scored six of the nest eight points to clinch the set, 25-23.
The Tribe built an early lead again in the third set, jumping out to a 7-3 advantage. After the Jaspers used a 5-1 rally to tie it at 8-8, William & Mary scored five of the next six points to regain the lead, 13-9. However, Manhattan battled all the way back, tying the score at 20-20 on a block by Anderson and Ellie Wiekamp (Laguna Niguel, Calif.). William & Mary went back in front 21-20 before an Alexa Lampasona (Remsenburg, N.Y.) kill and an Anderson block gave the Jaspers their first lead of the set, 22-21. Manhattan held on to take the set by a 25-23 margin to extend the match.
In the fourth set, William & Mary used an early 4-0 run to turn a 4-3 deficit into a 7-4 advantage. The Tribe eventually extended their lead to 16-9 before the Jaspers went on a 6-2 spurt to pull within three at 18-15. William & Mary responded with three straight points to make it 21-15, but Manhattan rallied for six of the next seven points to trim its deficit to one, 22-21. However, the Tribe took the next two points to reach match point, and William & Mary finished off a 3-1 match victory by taking the fourth set, 25-22.
Wiekamp had her third straight double-double for Manhattan, finishing with 16 kills and 15 digs. Furquim also tallied 16 kills to go along with nine digs, while Lampasona added 10 kills. Making her first collegiate start, Anderson registered six kills and five blocks. Hollegn Henderson (Long Beach, Calif.) and Jamie Collareta (Islip Terrace, N.Y.) shared the setting duties. Henderson distributed 26 assists, and Collareta handed out 23 assists. Kelsey Huntoon (Monroe, Mich.) contributed a match-high 29 digs and Julie Bies (Massapequa, N.Y.) notched 11 digs. As a team, the Jaspers hit .141 (56 kills, 30 errors, 185 attempts) in the match.
For William & Mary, Shaylin O'Connell recorded 11 kills and didn't commit an error in 24 swings, hitting .458 in the match. She also tallied eight blocks. Paulette Grand Pre had a double-double with 11 kills and 19 digs. Molly Krull dished out 25 assists and Carolina Rivas added 21 assists for the Tribe. Celine Alasomuka finished with 15 digs, Manon Murray posted 13 digs to go along with eight kills and three blocks, and Devin Andrews-Lyssy notched 12 digs, as William & Mary outdug Manhattan 86-81. The Tribe also had an 11-5 advantage in blocks and hit .206 (55-20-170) as a team.
Manhattan concludes its stay at the Tribe Invitational with a pair of matches on Saturday. The Jaspers take on Georgetown (3-0) at 12:30 p.m. before a 4:30 p.m. matchup with Campbell (2-3). The Hoyas beat the Camels in four sets to open the tournament.