CAMBRIDGE, MA – The Manhattan Jaspers' Men's Volleyball program (0-2, 0-0 NEC) fell to the Crimson of Harvard University (1-3, 0-0 EIVA) in four sets (21-25, 13-25, 25-17, 20-25) inside the Malkin Athletic Center on Friday night.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- After competing in its inaugural match, the Jaspers were back in action in the Commonwealth, looking to bounce back after facing a nationally ranked opponent in Penn State.
- Off a service error for the Green and White, setter Drew Blonski set up Max Larcheid for Manhattan's first point of the match to get his team on the board.
- Both teams continued trading points for the next nine, before the Jaspers added three straight points, highlighted by capitalizing on a pair of Harvard attempt errors.
- The Crimson logged the next seven of nine points to take a sizeable lead, before Kasen Owens's commanding termination silenced the atmosphere substantially.
- With the Jaspers needing to gain some momentum after dropping the first set, Manhattan grabbed its first four points off four service errors before Harvard, again, went on another scoring run.
- The Jaspers opened the third set in command with Patchell standing tall to capture the opening point with a solo block, before Patchell doubled down with a kill.
- Manhattan would post the next seven of 10 points, while maintaining its momentum down the stretch of the third set with another nine points in 11 total attempts to widen the margin to a set high of eight points.
- After securing the third set, looking to mount its comeback, the Jaspers immediately had to play catch-up with the first nine of 13 points favoring the home team. Manhattan continued to claw its way back, highlighted by a pair of Blake Perkins and Wojtek Nowak kills to narrow its deficit to as little as three, but it was not enough against the Crimson.
STATS AND NOTES
- Junior outside hitter Wojtek Nowak paced the Jaspers with 14 kills on 29 total attempts. Nowak logged one set assist, two solo blocks, and one dig for a total of 16 points on the night.
- Freshman outside hitter Kai Patchell added eight kills to his resume on 18 attempts, while logging three blocks and seven digs to post 10.5 overall points to the scoresheet.
- Sophomore outside hitter Kasen Owens logged nine kills on 30 attempts, with four set assists, and four digs on the night.
- Freshman setter Drew Blonski registered 32 set assists, with one service ace, 18 digs, and three total attempts. For Blonski, this was his first collegiate double-double.
- The Jaspers and Crimson both posted six blocks each, while the Green and White led the match with 45 digs, compared to 34 for the opposition.
NEXT UP
The Jaspers are back in action tomorrow, Saturday, January 17, when the Green and White continues its road series against the Crimson of Harvard University beginning at 3 p.m. inside the Malkin Athletic Center. The contest can be viewed on ESPN+ with a paid subscription.
Follow Manhattan Men's Volleyball on X and Instagram (@ManhattanMVBall).
