Nov. 1, 2014 Final Stats
Erin Bies served Siena to an unheard of 9-0 lead in the decisive fifth set and the Saints got the MAAC win they needed Saturday over Manhattan (25-20, 18-25, 25-13, 22-25, 15-3).
Meghann Wright returned to the outside to post a match-high 19 kills after being limited to the backrow in Wednesday's loss to Fairfield.
Siena (11-14, 9-4) strengthened its hold on third place in the conference and remained just a half match behind second place Fairfield.
The match started just like the last two home contests for the Saints - with a convincing first set win and an unconvincing second set loss. This time the Saints came out of the lockerroom focused and posted a dominant 25-13 victory in the third set. Manhattan (15-11, 8-5) bounced back to win a tight fourth set 25-22, setting the stage for the race to 15.
Bies was locked in behind the endline, sending floating serves just over that net with great pace and Manhattan couldn't get into system. Down 4-0 the Jaspers took a timeout, but Wright followed with a kill, Bies added an ace and after Jacqueline Skeen finished an overpass the Saints were shutting out Manhattan at the crossover. Even after the Japsers final got a side-out, Siena didn't let off the gas, finishing out an impressive 15-3 win to claim the match.
Wright hit .348 on the outside and provided the threat Siena desperately needed after being forced to play a limited role due to back pain Wednesday. Samantha Pethokoukis added balance with nine kills in just 13 swings in the middle (.615), and Sonja Vasovic killed 13 of her 29 attacks on the outside as Siena was on sync offensively for most of the match.
Sydney Volovsky led Manhattan with 16 kills and liberos Allie Yamashiro and Bobbi Lin Kalama each had 25 digs to pace their respective teams.
Siena out-blocked Manhattan 11-4 and controlled a 78-72 edge in digs, but it was the 64-48 difference in kills that proved too much for the Jaspers to overcome.
The Saints will look to wrap up their home season with a victory Sunday at 1 p.m. against Iona. The Siena senior class will be honored prior to the match.
