PURCHASE, N.Y. – Wrapping up a five-match homestand, the Manhattanville University women's volleyball team celebrated Senior Night inside Kennedy Gymnasium with a 3-1 victory over Old Westbury. The win (25-18, 21-25, 25-19, 25-18) bring Manhattanville to 16-9 overall and a perfect 10-0 against the Skyline Conference, officially securing one of the top two seeds for the Skyline Conference Championship later this month.
The Valiants celebrated
Grace Ballagas (Carolina, Puerto Rico/Robinson School),
Alyssa Bucci (Rye Brook, N.Y./Blind Brook High School),
Eva Kocovic (Bronx, N.Y./Maria Regina High School) and
Ayla Ruiz (Honolulu, Hawaii/St. Andrew's Schools) for their four years with the program ahead of opening serve. The foursome played immeasurable roles in the team's continued success in the conference, winning each of the last two Skyline Conference championships and making it to the finals in each of their previous three seasons.
All four seniors fittingly played big roles in the victory on Friday night. Ruiz notched her second-straight double-double and fifth of the year with 12 kills and 12 digs. She finished only second on the night in kills to
Loren Hernandez (Toa Baja, Puerto Rico/American Military Academy), with the junior logging 16 in just her two sets on the floor.
Sofia Morales (Tolland, Conn./Tolland) and
Emily Brown (Kaneohe, Hawaii/Damien Memorial) combined for 15 putaways with eight and seven, respectively.
Ballagas continued to do what she's done all four years as a Valiant and made playson the defensive end, leading the team with 17 digs. Bucci matched Ruiz and
Alana Rivera (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico/Colegio Marista de Guaynabo) with 12 digs, matching her career-high. Kocovic, meanwhile, lead the Valiants with five aces on the night, delivering big down the stretch of the fourth set to secure the victory.
Rivera and
Samantha Andriola (Garden City South, N.Y./Sacred Heart Academy) split setter duties, totaling 48 of the Valiants' 53 assists. Rivera logged 28 assists, with Andriola providing the other 20.
The Panthers came into town looking to play spoiler on Senior Night and take a bite out of the Valiants' unbeaten streak in conference play, entering the night with 31-straight victories over Skyline opponents. Old Westbury pushed the Valiants to the limit over the course of the night. After Manhattanville opened the night with back-to-back kills by Ruiz, the Valiants could not build a leader greater than three until the closing run finally pulled the home side away from the Panthers. Old Westbury evened things up four separate times, with the latest coming at a 16-16 stalemate. Manhattanville benefited from a kill apiece by Rivera and
Lea McIntyre (Lansingburgh, N.Y./Lansingburgh) surrounding a Panther attack error to go back up by three, but Old Westbury continued to stay within striking distance, down 20-18. Ruiz won back control of the serve with a kill and continued a five-point run with a second putaway. New-found serving aficionado
Meghan Wildes (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) recorded her second ace in as many matches before a pair of Panther attack errors secured the opening set for the Valiants, 25-18.
Old Westbury evened the affair up at a set apiece by outlasting Manhattanville in a frame of runs. Trailing 5-2 early, the Panthers went on an extended 8-2 run to jump in front. The advantage remained with Old Westbury up to a 15-13 advantage, when Manhattanville took advantage of a service error to score four straight and reclaim the lead. It was short-lived before the Panthers rattled off the next five points and seven of the ensuing eight to go up 22-18. The Valiants closed the gap down to one, but Old Westbury sealed the door with a final three-point run to take the frame 25-21.
Despite logging just one kill in the entirety of the third set, the Panthers continued to remain close with Manhattanville. Old Westbury jumped out to a 4-0 lead off Valiant miscues and mistakes and continued to lead up to 5-3. The Valiants finally found their footing with a 6-0 run to go up 9-5. The Panthers responded in short with the next three to make it a one point score once again before the home side found breathing room at the end of a 4-0 run. While the Panthers continued to find life in Manhattanville errors, the lack of an attack was too much to overcome as the Valiants were able to do damage when keeping the ball in play. Manhattanville's lead peaked at eight up 24-16, and while the Panthers were able to get the next three points, a service error spelled the end of a comeback attempt as the Valiants were victorious 25-19.
Both teams saved their best for last as each side posted a match-high attack percentage to close out the night. The squads combined for 26 kills to just seven errors as things started to click. After trading blows to a 4-3 Mville lead, the Panthers went on a 4-0 run that put Old Westbury ahead for a majority of the set. The Valiants pulled even at 8-8 before Old Westbury scored five of the next six to go up 13-9. The Panther lead hovered around three points up to an 18-15 advantage. Hernandez delivered a kill to kickstart the longest run of the night, ten straight points by the Valiants to secure the win. Kocovic logged four aces as part of the run, with Hernandez earning four kills and Brown adding one. Hernandez delivered the final blow with the closing kill, earning the 25-18 win.
Up Next
Manhattanville's final conference match of the regular season will be one of the toughest tests of the year. A rematch of the 2023 Skyline Finals looms in Patchogue on Tuesday night as the Valiants travel to Saint Joseph's Long Island for a 7 p.m. match. The winner of the contest will earn the No. 1 seed for the postseason tournament.
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