POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - Joanna Foss (Northville, Mich.) had a match-high 18 kills to go along with a team-high 15 digs as the Marist volleyball team defeated Manhattan in dominating fashion 3-1 (25-21, 25-19, 14-25, 12-25) Saturday afternoon at McCann Arena in a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) match.
Grace Hill (Portage, Michigan) had 13 kills and Hanna Stoiberg (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) had 11 kills and 24 assists. Audra Brady (Allentown, Pa.) added 21 assists and Brooke Zywick (Garden City, Mich.) contributed with 13 digs. Marisa Gilbert (Pflugerville, Texas) finished with four total blocks.
Marist (12-15, 9-8 MAAC) trailed 12-8 in the first set before a kill by Gilbert started a 9-1 run that gave the Red Foxes the lead at 17-13. Included in the run were kills by Stoiberg, Kayla Burton (Kissimmee, Fla.) and Foss and a service ace by Brady. After two points by Manhattan (16-14, 9-8 MAAC), Marist went on another run of 6-1, including five straight points, to expand their lead to 23-16. Foss and Hill each had a kill in the streak and Stoiberg had three while teaming with Burton for a block. The Jaspers closed within three at 24-21, but Hill closed out the set for the Red Foxes with a kill. Stoiberg led all hitters with six kills in the frame and Marist hit at a .432 clip.
The Red Foxes started out strong in the second set, scoring four of the first five points on kills from Foss, Burton and Leeann Harridsleff (Simi Valley, Calif.) and a solo block by Gilbert. The Jaspers worked to tie the score at seven and eventually take the lead at 12-8, but Marist would respond with the run of the season, scoring the next 11 points. Hill had three kills, Stoiberg had one and Gilbert and Harridsleff combined for a block. When all was said and done, the Red Foxes had a comfortable lead of 19-12. The teams would trade points back and forth until Stoiberg gave the set to Marist with her third kill of the set. Hill had a match-high six kills in the second set and the Red Foxes held Manhattan to just a .024 hitting percentage.
The third set started out much like the first two, with the teams playing to an early 4-4 deadlock. Manhattan would go on a 10-3 run from there however, before a kill by Hill brought the Red Foxes within six at 14-8. Two kills by Foss and one by Gilbert helped cut the deficit to five at 17-12, but the Jaspers went on their second major run of the frame, scoring 8 of the final 10 points to win the set 25-14. Foss and Hill led Marist with four and three kills, respectively.
A block by Gilbert and Hill began the third set and started a 7-0 run that included a kill by Gilbert and a service ace by Hill. The Jaspers cut the lead to five at 9-4, but another streak of six out of eight points expanded the lead to 15-6. Stoiberg had a kill and Hill added a solo block in the run. With the score 16-10, the Red Foxes went on yet another run, this time going on a streak of 9-2 that eventually won the set and the match. Foss had five kills in the streak, including three in a row, and teamed up with Burton for a block and Gena Russo (Rensselaer, N.Y) added a service ace. Foss led all players in the set with seven kills and the Red Foxes hit .333 as a team while holding Manhattan to -.059.
The Red Foxes will wrap up their regular season on Sunday with a home match at 2 p.m. against Saint Peter's. The team's four seniors - Foss, Burton, Harridsleff and Stephanie Robinett (Sugar Land, Texas) - and volunteer assistant Robbie Williams will all be honored in a Senior Day ceremony prior to the match. Foss is just three digs away from 1,000 in her career and becoming the first Red Fox to achieve 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in her career. Additionally, Stoiberg needs 23 assists to become the seventh player in program history to reach 1,000 career assists, joining Brady who reached the milestone Nov. 2 at Fairfield.
