New York, NY - The John Jay men's volleyball team rallied back to tie the set at 1-1 but the Baruch College Bearcats regrouped to defeat the Bloodhounds, 3-1 (18-25; 29-27; 24-26; 19-25), at ARC Arena on Thursday evening. 

The Bloodhounds fall to 14-6 overall and 7-4 in CUNY Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) while the Bearcats remain perfect in league play at 10-0 while moving to 13-6.  

The second set victory by John Jay marked the first time since March 26, 2022 that the Bloodhounds had taken a set from the Bearcats. 

Kyle Barriffe-Johnson had a stellar night for the Bloodhounds, recording a team-best 19 kills. Logan Ramos nearly recorded a triple-double, as the Riverdale, NY native posted 11 kills, 19 assists, and nine digs in the match. Jeferson Avila-Macancela matched Ramos with nine digs while adding seven kills. 

Jack Centeno notched a match-high 24 kills, six digs, and two aces. Ryan Oommen finished with 54 assists and eight digs. 

First Set - John Jay jumped out to a 5-3 advantage after stringing together four straight points. Baruch responded with a 6-2 run of their own in taking a 9-7 lead following an attack error by Avila. The Bloodhounds got to within one, 10-9, before the home team scored five straight points, upping their advantage to 15-9. The Bloodhounds rallied with four straight points that brought them to within two, 15-13. Baruch sealed the first set win, thanks to a 10-5 run, capped by three straight kills from Ari Osmanaj, Peter Gavroff, and Centeno. 

Second Set - The two teams traded early points before the Bearcats posted three straight points in to retake the lead at 6-5. With the score pitted at 9-9, John Jay seized momentum briefly, as back-to-back kills from Ramos and Barriffe-Johnson gave the visitors a 12-9 lead. An attack error by Haoxin Hu pushed John Jay's lead to 14-11 as Baruch called for time. Following the break in the action, the Bearcats scored seven of the next nine points in taking a 17-15 lead, thanks to a kill by Osmanaj. The action picked up as Baruch went up 22-20 but the Bloodhounds responded back, highlighted by an ace from Ramos that evened the set at 22. Both teams had a chance for the set point, as the visitors, with Evan Wandersee serving, got the point on an attack error. The points continued to be exchanged until KBJ sent an emphatic kill, to the delight of the Bloodhound supporters. An attack error by Centeno gave the Bloodhounds the set, tying the match at 1-1. The Bloodhounds hit a blistering .412 during the set with 17 kills and just three errors. 

Third Set - John Jay carried the momentum from the second set into the third, claiming a 6-4 advantage to start. The Bloodhounds took a four-point lead, 10-6, on a bad set by Oommen. The Bearcats got back in the set on a 13-8 spurt, giving them a 19-18 lead following a kill from Centeno. Similar to the second set, the match extended with kills from Centeno and Hu before Hu sealed the set with a second kill, giving Baruch a 2-1 edge. 

Fourth Set- In what turned out to be the final set of the night, Baruch raced out to a 5-2 lead following the second ace by Hu. John Jay trimmed the deficit to two, 10-8 on an ace from Alex Bridgelall. The Bloodhounds fought back, cutting the lead down to four, 23-19, but a service error from Ramos gave Baruch match point and Gavroff finished the contest with a kill. 

The Bloodhounds will continue their road trip on Tuesday, March 26 as they conclude their season series with CCNY at 7:00 p.m. 
 

Follow John Jay Athletics