Seton Hall University
Rutgers
Volleyball Outlasts Rutgers, 3-2
10/20/2012 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. - Shelbey Manthorpe (Merion Station, Pa.) notched her seventh triple-double of the season as the Seton Hall women's volleyball team held off Rutgers, 3-2 (25-18, 25-17, 21-25, 24-26, 15-7), Friday at Walsh Gym.
Manthorpe matched her career-high with a team-best 16 kills to go with 27 assists and 12 digs. The sophomore now has 11 triple-doubles in her career.
In all, four Pirates reached double-figures in kills. Stacey Manthorpe (Merion Station, Pa.) recorded her 13th double-double of the season with 14 kills and 15 digs. Sophomore Simona Sekulova (Auckland, New Zealand), despite being hobbled by a lingering knee injury, tallied 11 kills, while senior Morgan DeVries (Grand Rapids, Mich.) had 10 kills.
Alyssa Warren (Joliet, Ill.) led all defensive players with 35 digs.
Senior Olivia Trudeau (Shell Beach, Calif.) narrowly missed a double-double, finishing with 20 assists and eight digs.
Seton Hall (17-5, 5-4) dominated the first two sets, and the match appeared to be headed towards a quick finish. Locked at 13 in the first set, the Pirates scored four straight points to give themselves an insurmountable 17-13 lead and cruised to a 25-18 win. Set two was more of the same, Seton Hall jumped out to a 17-10 lead and the Scarlet Knights wouldn't get closer than four points the rest of the way. The Pirates won set two, 25-17, to take a two-sets-to-none lead.
Rutgers (16-8, 2-7) however, came storming back in set three. Seton Hall jumped out to a 9-4 lead, but the Scarlet Knights methodically chipped away and eventually tied the score at 18. With the score tied at 21, Rutgers tallied the final four points of the set to win, 25-21, and remain alive in the match.
Set four was a marathon that included five lead changes and 11 ties. Kylie Orr's attack error gave Seton Hall its largest lead of the set, 19-14, but went on a 7-1 run to take a 21-20 lead, their first of the set. The Pirates then scored four of the next five points to take a 24-22 lead, but the Scarlet Knights staved off two match points and scored the final four points of the set to win, 26-24, and force a decisive fifth set.
The Pirates dominated set five from the start, jumping out to a 5-1 lead. Rutgers would respond with a 5-1 run to tie the score at six, but Seton Hall would finish the set on a 9-1 run to win, 15-7, and prevail in the match, three-sets-to-two.
The victory is the 17th of the season for Seton Hall, which matches its win total of the 2011 season with at least six matches still to play. The win also improves the Pirates to 4-3 in five-set matches.
Seton Hall will return to action next Friday when it travels to St. John's for a 7:00 p.m. match. The Pirates will return to Walsh on Saturday, Nov. 3 when they host Notre Dame.
