BROCKPORT, N.Y. – There was plenty to celebrate in Brockport on Saturday afternoon as
Loren Hernandez (Toa Baja, Puerto Rico/American Military Academy) made program history, breaking the Valiants' all-time career kills record, as part of the Manhattanville University women's volleyball team winning both matches on the final day of the SUNY Brockport Invitational. With the four-setter victories over SUNY Brockport and SUNY Morrisville, the Valiants are off to a 4-0 start to a season for the first time since 2015.
Hernandez recorded 29 kills across the two matches to move atop the program record book with 1,001 putaways for her career. She surpasses Kerry Mackey '18, who finished her playing career from 2014 to 2017 with an even 1,000.
Match One Recap: Manhattanville 3, Brockport 1 (25-22, 25-21, 19-25, 25-16)
The Valiants opened up the day by recording its first-ever win over Brockport as a program since the two teams first met all the way back in 1985.
Hernandez began her march to program history by leading the attack with 17 kills, bringing her career total up to 989.
Caylin Caballero (Eastvale, Calif./Walnut) reached double-figures for the third-straight match to open up her collegiate career, while
Emily Brown (Kaneohe, Hawaii/Damien Memorial) added a season-best six kill performance.
Alana Rivera Torres (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico/Colegio Marista de Guaynabo) and
Samantha Andriola (Garden City South, N.Y./Sacred Heart Academy) racked up 37 of Manhattanville's 41 assists, accounting for 21 and 16, respectively.
Kayla Jennings (Yorktown Heights, N.Y./Lakeland) continued to serve as the pilot of Manhattanville's defensive effort with 21 digs, leading all players from both teams.
The Valiants had the serve working, recording a season-high 11 aces as a team. Hernandez led the way with four, while Jennings logged three and Rivera Torres notched a pair.
Trading runs through the early going, the Golden Eagles built up a 10-6 lead before Manhattanville went on a 5-0 run to take the lead at 11-10. The teams continued to go back-and-forth as Brockport reclaimed the lead at 15-13 when the Valiants scored 10 of the next 12, securing the largest lead of the set at 23-17. Brockport fired one last punch, scoring the next four points, but the scoreboard was working against the host team as a service error and Caballero kill allowed the Valiants to take set point, 25-22.
Manhattanville came out firing with a 9-3 opening lead to begin set two. Brockport tried to play catchup for most of the frame, cutting the deficit down to a single point on a pair of occasions before the Valiants regained some breathing room. The Golden Eagles would final close the gap on the heels of a four-point run to take a 20-19 lead, the team's first advantage since the opening point. The advantage would only last momentarily, as Manhattanville scored six of the next seven points to claim set two, 25-21.
The Golden Eagles prolonged the match by taking set three on the back of a match-high .286 attack percentage, cutting down on errors to get on the board with a 25-19 win. Having to respond to the first dropped set of the year, the Valiants answered with thunder, hitting their match-high of .346 in the fourth. A 4-0 run put Manhattanville up 8-5 with a lead that the visiting side never let go of. The Valiants generated only one other run of four points during the set, but it was all Manhattanville needed as Brockport's longest runs capped at two points. Hernandez delivered the final blow of what would become her historic day with a match-winning kill, taking the fourth set by a final of 25-16.
Match Two Recap: Manhattanville 3, SUNY Morrisville 1 (26-24, 14-25, 25-13, 25-13)
Manhattanville wrapped up a perfect 3-for-3 trip upstate by taking care of business against SUNY Morrisville in another four-setter.
Hernandez moved herself atop the program record book with her 12 kills effort, a total matched by Caballero.
Kaiel Maynor (Newark, N.J./Science Park) had her best performance in a Valiant uni as the grad student provided 10 kills.
Rivera Torres (18) and Andriola (11) once again served as a two-headed setter system, while Jennings continued to dive all over the floor for 16 digs. Hernandez also heavily frequented in the defensive operation with 14 digs for her third double-double.
Amelia Morrison (Avon, Conn./Avon) was a netfront presence for the Valiants with three blocks, adding on from her five earlier in the day versus Brockport. Through four matches, the freshman leads the Valiants with 13 total blocks.
It was a tale of runs in the opening set as the Valiants responded to the Mustangs' opening 5-1 score with a pair of four-point spurts to go ahead 9-6. Morrisville reclaimed the lead with a five-point swing at 15-12 and continued to lead up to a 19-16 score. The Valiants nabbed five of the next six before a pair of tied scores brought it to 22-22. Manhattanville took the lead on a service error, but Manhattanville's ensuing serve was also off the mark before the Mustangs recorded an ace to reach set point at 24-23. Hernandez kept the Valiants alive with a tying kill before a Morrisville error and Morrison block capped off three-straight points for Manhattanville to win the set, 26-24.
Manhattanville had no answer for the Mustangs in the second set, falling victim to self-inflicted wounds with 10 errors to just four kills. The Valiants' -.214 swing percentage was by far the team's lowest on the day, allowing Morrisville to tie things up with a 25-14 win.
The adjustments made between sets paid off as the Valiants quickly moved on, hitting .464 with 15 kills. With the Mustangs ahead 5-4, Manhattanville went on a 6-1 run and never looked back. Leading 14-11, the Valiants scored 11 of the following 13 points to win a convincing 25-13 set three.
Morrisville continued to cool off, hitting negative in the fourth set as the Valiants replicated the 25-13 score to complete the win. Manhattanville never trailed, and the lead never dipped below four after going on a three-point run to take an 8-3 lead. Hernandez' history maker would come on the penultimate point, logging kill number 1,001 off a set from Andriola to push the Valiants to match point before winning the contest on the following rally off a Morrisville bad set.
Up Next
The Valiants head to New Jersey on Thursday to take on Kean University at 7 p.m.
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