NEW YORK – The Yeshiva University men's volleyball team's valiant comeback attempt fell short as YU dropped a hard-fought contest in five sets to St. Joseph's University Brooklyn, at Max Stern Athletic Center, on Tuesday evening. Set scores were 25-21, 25-27, 25-22, 17-25, and 15-12.

Leading the way for the Maccabees (5-16, 2-10 Skyline) was senior outside hitter Benjamin Smillie who tallied a double-double with 10 kills and 22 digs. Graduate libero Avi Braun led all players with 27 digs. First-year setter Eli Waxman had an outstanding match with a career-best 41 assists, while also adding eight digs, two kills, and just as many service aces.

Rookie middle blocker Lavi Friedman had a team-high 18 kills, while generating three blocks and two digs. Senior outside hitter Eliezer Benjamin slammed home 10 kills, while producing a hitting percentage of .409, scoring four service aces, and providing three digs. Graduate student Michael Stark anchored the defense with 15 digs, while senior outside hitter Shmuel Aberman recorded three kills and 11 digs.

In the opening set, Smillie scored a service ace and then tallied a kill to narrow YU's disadvantage to 18-17. After each team scored a point, the Bears (6-11, 5-6 Skyline) took control with a 5-1 run to earn a set-point opportunity at 24-19. Yeshiva scored the next two points to stay in it, but then a kill by junior outside hitter Alex Helfant clinched the opening set for St. Joseph's.

In the second game, the Macs fell behind by a score of 24-21. However, Yeshiva would not go down without a fight as a kill by Smillie and back-to-back service aces courtesy of Benjamin highlighted four unanswered points by the Macs to put the Blue and White in front, 25-24, after fighting off three set-point opportunities by the Bears. St. Joseph's scored the next point to knot it up at 25, but then a kill by Friedman put the Maccabees in front again. YU secured the next point to earn the win in the second set to tie the match at a game apiece.

St. Joseph's led the third set, 13-12, before going on a 6-1 run to take a commanding 19-13 hold. Later in the frame, Yeshiva went on a 5-1 blitz, highlighted by an ace from Waxman and a kill by Benjamin, to pull the Blue and White to within one, at 21-20. It would not be enough as the Bears scored four of the next six points to take a 2-1 lead in the match.

Yeshiva led from wire-to-wire in the fourth set to earn the impressive victory in the stanza, 25-17, to force a fifth and deciding game.

The Maccabees got off to a great start in the fifth set, as a service ace by sophomore setter Zanvy Lesnoy put the Macs in front, 7-4. After St. Joseph's pulled to within one, Benjamin slammed home a kill to give Yeshiva more breathing room at 8-6. The Macs went up 10-9, later in the rubber set, but the Bears turned the tide into their favor by scoring four straight points to jump out in front, 13-10. Friedman provided temporary relief for Yeshiva with a kill, but then St. Joseph's scored two of the final three points to clinch the fifth set and the Skyline victory.

For YU, junior right side hitter Eitan Cillo had four digs, while junior middle blocker Jonathan Werta provided three digs of his own. Senior middle blocker Yaakov Baker produced a dig and a service ace.

For St. Joseph's Brooklyn, Helfant led the way with 32 kills and 15 digs, while junior libero Leonel Bravo had a strong match defensively with 22 digs.

Yeshiva will host College of Mount Saint Vincent, in a Skyline match at Max Stern Athletic Center, on Thursday evening. The first serve is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. It is Senior Night and Yeshiva University will be honoring its men's volleyball graduating seniors with a ceremony prior to the start of the match.