PURCHASE, N.Y. -- Senior All-America middle blocker
Anna Barry (Andover) moved into eighth place all-time in career kills but the Eastern Connecticut State University women's volleyball team attacked at only .048 in losing in straight sets to Manhattanville College in the season-opener for both teams Thursday night at Kennedy Gym. Scores were 25-18, 25-20, 25-23.
In the first meeting between the programs, Eastern attacked at .000 in losing the first two sets before attacking at .143 and dropping a two-point decision in the third. In the third set, Eastern led by three points but was outscored 9-4 the rest of the way. Barry had the team's final three kills, the second one tying the game for the final time, 22-22, off of a Valiant serve. Consecutive Eastern attack errors pushed the hosts to within a point of the match. Barry kept Eastern alive with her 11
th and final kill, but with Eastern serving with a chance to tie, Alejandra Figueroa ended it off an assist from Vianca Vital.
Five-foot-11 inch sophomore Ayla Ruiz, a native of Honolulu, had a match-high 17 kills with a .333 attack percentage for Manhattanville. Standing only 5-foot-6 inches tall, Figueroa, a graduate student from Puerto Rico, added ten kills. Vital had 31 assists and ten digs and sophomore Grace Ballagas 13 digs. Both Vital and Ballagas are natives of Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Barry, who moved ahead of Alumni Hall of Famer Jennifer Butts and into eight place all-time with 1048 career kills, also had four blocks but was Eastern's only player with more than three kills. Senior
Meg Verizzi (Lebanon) and first-year setter
Liz Squier (Trevor, WI) combined for 17 assists and senior
Paula Perez (Caguas, P.R.) and sophomore
Cassie Parmelee (East Berlin) combined for 31 digs.
Eastern and Manhattanville were coming off near-identical seasons, both winning 18 matches and reaching the championship game of their respective tournaments. The Warriors were playing without graduated four-year starters
Alaetra Long and
Abby Stern, two of the program's top offensive and defensive players over their careers.
Eastern faces Mount Holyoke College at 3 p.m. and host University of Saint Joseph (CT) at 5 p.m.
Saturday.
