Riverdale, N.Y. ? Manhattan beat playoff bound Loyola College 3-2 today in Draddy Gym. Junior Andrea Reiff tallied 10 kills on the day, hitting .296 and contributing 16 digs for the Lady Jaspers.
It was an exciting match in Riverdale, as third place Loyola came to take on Manhattan. In the first game, the Lady J's found themselves in an early deficit, down 10-6. But the girls battled back as soon deficit was cut to one, 14-13. But that would be as close as they Lady J's would come as the Greyhounds took the first game 30-26. In the second game, Manhattan came out with a bang as they went up early, 14-9. Loyola would cut the score 15-12, but the Lady Jaspers would not let the score get any closer as they pulled away to take the third game 30-20.
The Lady J's had the momentum going their way, and were looking to take that into the third game. Manhattan went up 13-7 in the beginning of the third game and never looked back as junior Jackie Kapovich had four kills throughout the game. The Lady Jaspers went on to win the third game 30-24, and now lead the match 2-1. With Manhattan one win away from a victory, the girls were looking to put Loyola away. The Greyhounds were not going to go quietly as they came out with a 15-9 lead midway through the game. The Lady J's would score the next two consecutive points, but that would not be enough as the deficit was too much and Loyola took the fourth game 30-19. At the start of the fifth and deciding game, both teams battled hard. At the switch, Manhattan led 8-6 and was looking for something to keep their momentum going. A big kill by Rita Welsh on their next position put the score at 9-6 with Manhattan moving forward. With the Lady J's up 14-10, Sherryta Stokes slammed the final point home as Manhattan won the game 15-10, and took the match 3-2.
Rita Welsh and Sherryta Stokes were both tied for a team high 15 kills on the day. Stokes also contributed 19 digs along with Senior Ashley Watson who marked a game high 21 digs. Setter Alyssa Getzel led all players with 52 assists in the Manhattan victory.
The Lady Jaspers will travel to play their last home game in Connecticut tomorrow. They will face first place Fairfield University Stags at 2:00 p.m.
