(Brooklyn, NY) - Junior Zanvy Grauman (Silver Spring, MD/Berman Hebrew) had 16 kills, nine digs, five total blocks and a .400 attack percentage, and fellow junior David Kahana (Silver Spring, MD/MJBHA) notched a double-double with 20 kills and 14 digs but the Yeshiva University Men's Volleyball team fell to 2-2 with a 3-2 heartbreaking loss to Lehman College on Thursday night at the Max Stern Athletics Center.
Playing in front of a raucous crowd that packed the MSAC to near capacity, Yeshiva and Lehman engaged in a fierce battle that lasted nearly three hours as both teams broke 24 points during each of the first four sets. Yeshiva won an incredible first set, 30-28, but Lehman rallied for a 30-24 win during the second set. The third set proved to be the most exciting of the match as Yeshiva stormed ahead 28-24, only to see Lehman score five straight points, and Lehman appeared to be poised to take a 2-1 lead. However, the Maccabees rallied for three consecutive, culminating with YU's lone service ace of the match, to win the set and take a 2-1 lead. With momentum on their side, YU looked to score the upset win during the fourth set, but Lehman rallied late for a 30-25 win. The win set up a fifth and deciding set, that was won 15-11 by Lehman to win one of the most exciting matches of the young season.
Statistically, the match was a near draw as Yeshiva hit .139, while Yeshiva hit .132. Lehman had 13.5 total blocks compared to Yeshiva's 12.5, and Lehman had eight service aces compared to Yeshiva's single ace. Both teams played terrific defense as Lehman had 77 digs, while Yeshiva registered 69.
Also having outstanding matches for Yeshiva were senior Joseph Bajtner (Skokie, IL/Ida Crown Jewish Academy), who registered a season-high 49 assists, while junior Nachum Hascalovici (Montreal, Canada/Hebrew Academy) registered a team-high 18 digs.
Yeshiva returns to action on Sunday, Feb. 1 when the Maccabees travel to Bard College for a 12:00 p.m. tri-match with Bard and City College of New York.
Click here for video highlights of the Yeshiva-Lehman Men's Volleyball match.
