PURCHASE, N.Y. – For the second consecutive season and the third of the last four, the Manhattanville College women's volleyball team has won the Skyline Conference Championship Tournament. The top-seeded Valiants swept No. 2 Saint Joseph's Long Island in three sets (25-20, 25-16, 25-16) to raise the conference trophy, completing a remarkable 13 3-0 sweeps against Skyline Conference teams this season.
Playing in her final Skyline Conference Championship match,
Vianca Vital (Carolina, Puerto Rico/Perpetuo Socorro) earned tournament Most Outstanding Player recognition as she captured the third Skyline Championship of her collegiate career. The graduate setter finished with 31 assists, seven digs, six kills, and four aces as she made her presence known all over the court.
As was the case in Thursday's semifinal victory,
Loren Hernandez (Toa Baja, Puerto Rico/American Military Academy) and
Ayla Ruiz (Honolulu, Hawaii/St. Andrew's Schools) led the attack effort with a combined 25 kills. Hernandez' 13 led all hitters across bopth squads, while Ruiz finished just behind her with 12 putaways.
Both Hernandez and Ruiz finished with double-doubles as they were also heavy contributors on the defensive side. Ruiz earned 11 digs while Hernandez added 10.
Grace Ballagas (Carolina, Puerto Rico/Robinson School) led the team with 26, her second-highest total in a match this season.
At the net,
Meghan Wildes (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) blocked a pair of attack attempts while Ruiz added one.
The Valiants opened up the day on a 6-2 run, added by a trio of Golden Eagles errors with kills from Hernandez, Ruiz and
Sofia Morales (Tolland, Conn./Tolland). Manhattanville would never look back as every time Saint Joseph's threatened to get back within striking distance, the Valiants pulled out a timely run. The Golden eagles rattled off the next three points to pull within one, which was swiftly answered by Manhattanville scoring the next four. The teams would trade blows up to a 17-14 Manhattanville advantage, where the home squad scored five straight points to climb out to a 22-14 advantage. While Saint Joseph's scored six of the next seven, it was too little, too late as an attack error and Hernandez kill spotted the Valiants the first set of the day.
The Golden Eagles would deliver the first big strike of set two, using a four point run to take an early 6-4 advantage. As had been the case all season long against the Skyline, the Valiants had a quick rebuttal with a 10-2 run to flip the scoreboard up 14-8. Saint Joseph's never got back within six the rest of the way as Manhattanville took the set on a 5-2 run capped off by a Wildes putaway.
A 3-0 start developed into a 7-2 opening advantage for Manhattanville in the third, putting the Golden Eagles in another quick hole they would be unable to fight back out of. Saint Joseph's inched closer to an 11-7 deficit before a pair of Hernandez kills, a putaway by Vital and an ace by Ruiz gave the home squad a 15-7 advantage. Saint Joseph's would be unable to piece together a run larger than two points for the entire set, allowing the Valiants to march their way towards match point, winning the set 25-16 to mark a return to the NCAA Tournament.
Up Next
The Valiants await their draw for the NCAA DIII Women's Volleyball Tournament, which will be unveiled as part of the NCAA Selection Show at 1 p.m. on Monday.
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