BRONXVILLE, N.Y. - After five sets of competitive play from both teams, the Yeshiva Maccabees triumphed over the Sarah Lawrence Gryphons 15-10 in the deciding set to take a 3-2 victory in Thursday night's Skyline men's volleyball match. The Gryphons have now played into the fifth set in two consecutive matches and will travel for a tri-match in Jersey City, New Jersey on Saturday to face NJCU and Mount Saint Vincent.

By the Numbers

• Felix Massey continued his spectacular play with a 25-kill performance, including five service aces
• Lukas Gates and Juan Paris totaled 45 combined digs while Lance De Leoz added 16 for the Gryphons
• De Leoz led Sarah Lawrence with 24 assists while Paris added 15 of his own
• Derek Hickman had two solo blocks for Sarah Lawrence in the five-set match

How it Happened

The first set was a story of Yeshiva scoring runs, stringing multiple points together to stay ahead of the Gryphons and threatening to take the set with a 24-20 lead that would give them an advantage to start the evening. The Gryphons refused to go down without a fight, stringing together four points thanks to three of Massey's game-high 25 kills and knotting the game up at 24. The two teams would trade points back and forth and find themselves tied once again, this time at 26. After a Yeshiva service error it would be Hickman to be the hero and score off a set by De Leoz to secure the first point and give the Gryphons the all-important first set victory.

As the Gryphons entered the second set with a 1-0 lead, they looked to carry their momentum into another point but a 2-0 start by the Maccabees would swing the energy back in Yeshiva's favor. The Gryphons would answer the call as Massey would come through with another of his 25 kills to help bring the Gryphons back and just a few rallies later the teams would find themselves knotted up at four points apiece. The teams would continue to keep eachother close and found themselves tied once again at 16-16. This time it would be Nicholas Fajardo to kick start the Gryphons, converting a kill to give the Gryphons a 17-16 lead and starting a five-point run that would end with Sarah Lawrence ahead 21-16 and threatening to take a commanding 2-0 lead. After trading points on the next four serves, Sarah Lawrence was up 23-18 and an attack error by the Maccabees would put them at set-point. After two points would go the way of Yeshiva, it would be the familiar face of Massey to convert on a set by Juan Paris to give the Gryphons a two-set advantage.

The third set started out by looking very promising for the Gryphons as they jumped out to a 6-0 advantage but this time it would be the Maccabees who would respond. Yeshiva would rally to make the score 8-7 in favor of the Gryphons but after a three-point run a few rallies later the Maccabees would take a 12-11 lead. The teams would keep each other close and find themselves tied at 18 in what could be the final set of the day. Yeshiva was determined to not make that the case as they scored seven of the next eight points to take the set extend the match.

The fourth set saw the Maccabees take an early lead and refuse to allow the Gryphons back in the set, preventing the hosts from taking a lead throughout the entire set. A three-point run featuring one of Paris's seven kills would bring the score to 23-18 late in the set but it would not be enough as Yeshiva would take the set by a score of 25-19 and force a deciding set.

The final set of the match was a back-and-forth affair as the two teams would find themselves knotted up at eight points apiece after two consecutive rallies ended with kills by Massey. The Maccabees would then embark on the most important scoring run of the evening, taking five straight points to claim a 13-8 lead and put the pressure on the Gryphons to rally from behind. Despite another kill by Massey off a De Leoz set, the Gryphons would be unable to complete the comeback and would fall by a score of 15-10 in the fifth and final set

Up Next

The Gryphons (0-13, Skyline 0-8) will travel to New Jersey City to take on the Gothic Knights of NJCU and the Dolphins of Mount Saint Vincent. Gryphons will play at 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. and the Gothic Knights and Dolphins will end the day with a 3:00 p.m. match.