New York, NY - The John Jay men's volleyball team faced a 2-1 deficit before rallying back for a fourth set win and edged out the visiting Mount Saint Joseph Lions, 16-14, to win 3-2 to extend its win streak to six straight games.
With the win, the Bloodhounds move to 11-6 overall while the Lions falter to 5-8 on the season.
Nick Fuentes led the way with 17 kills while adding eight digs and 1.5 blocks.
Adam Bainey registered 14 kills while hitting a robust .600.
Quez Martin added six kills, 4.5 blocks, and two digs.
Jimmy Thinlay produced 48 assists, two blocks, and eight digs with three kills.
Logan Ramos notched a season-high 20 digs and six assists.
Mount Saint Joseph was led by Carson Reed and Jude Lewis, each recording 11 kills with Reed producing a double-double, adding a team-high 12 digs. Lewis had seven digs.
In the opening set, the Bloodhounds jumped out to a 2-0 lead before the Lions went ahead 12-0. John Jay answered back with a 4-1 burst to go ahead 14-13, on a kill from Fuentes. Fuentes added four kills to give the Bloodhounds an 18-16 advantage. The Lions responded with a 6-1 run that gave them a 23-20 lead following a kill from Luke Dwire.
Joshua Acevedo stopped the MSJ run with a kill, but the Lions closed out the set with back-to-back points for the win.
After a back-and-forth pace to commence the second set, the Bloodhounds raced out to a 12-5 advantage, capped by a kill from
Adria Galve. John Jay held a 21-14 lead on a kill from Martin before the Lions mounted a comeback, trailing 23-18, before Galve added another kill, and the set was capped on a block from Bainey and
Brandon Roman.
In the third set, both teams continued to trade points before the Bloodhounds took a 9-7 lead on a kill from Bainey. John Jay upped its lead to 17-12 on a kill from Acevedo. MSJ staged a 9-3 run to lead 21-20. Both teams exchanged points, with the Lions taking a 25-24 lead on a kill from Roger Wilcox. John Jay was a point away from taking the set, but back-to-back attack errors and an ace from Lewis swung the point to the Lions, as they led 2-1 in the overall match.
The fourth set continued the back-and-forth tilt with both teams trading points. MSJ held a 16-15 lead before John Jay staged a 6-0 run thanks to four attack errors by the visitors. Reed recorded a kill that got them to within two, 23-21. A kill from Bainey put John Jay a point away for the win.
Micah Rossman delivered an ace, setting up a fifth and deciding set.
Mount Saint Joseph opened the fifth set with a 6-4 lead, with Croft and Reed posting aces. The Bloodhounds answered back with four straight points before switching sides. The Lions notched five consecutive points to lead 11-8 before Fuentes came up with an emphatic kill. The Bloodhounds rallied back.
Facing match point, Bainey added a kill and combined with Fuentes on a block that brought John Jay to within one, 14-13. Rossman served up another ace to give John Jay match point before Fuentes ended the contest with a kill.
The Bloodhounds will head to Jersey City, NJ, on Saturday to take on Misericordia and conference member, NJCU.
