RIVERDALE, N.Y. – The Maritime Volleyball team clinched a berth in the Skyline Conference Tournament for the second consecutive season as the Privateers knocked off the Purchase Panthers on Saturday afternoon at the Peter J. Sharp Center.
 
In addition to the team's win on Saturday, Maritime fell to the host Mount St. Vincent Dolphins during the third match of the tri-match.
 
The win marks just the second time in program history that the team has qualified for the postseason, as the squad finished the regular season with a 5-5 mark in Skyline Conference play.
 
Maritime will enter the tournament as the sixth seed, and will travel to third-seeded Mount St. Mary on Tuesday evening at a time to be announced. The matchup against the Knights will be a rematch of last season's Skyline Tournament First Round game that saw Maritime fall in four sets to Mount St. Mary. Earlier this year, Maritime fell to Mount St. Mary in straight sets on September 27 on Long Island at Old Westbury.
 
Against Purchase, Maritime was led by sophomore Shannon Brady (Bayport, N.Y./Bayport-Blue Point) as she led the team with 12 kills, six service aces and eight digs against the Panthers. Junior Carly Lombardo (Setauket, N.Y./Ward Melville) added nine kills to go along with four digs and one service ace.
 
Junior Erika Bailey (Newark Valley, N.Y./Tioga Central) led the team with 28 assists, while also finishing third on the team with four service aces. Rookie Meredith Hayes (Houston, Texas/St. Agnes Academy) contributed with six kills and five service aces, while also recording four digs. Bailey and Hayes combined on the only block of the match for the Privateers.
 
Maritime controlled much of the tempo in the early set against the Panthers, jumping ahead to a quick 8-2 lead. Purchase closed the gap to one at 9-8, but the Privateers surged ahead on a long service rally by Brady to take control of the set. Maritime closed the opener by a 25-12 score.
 
In the second set, Purchase took a 1-0 and 2-1 lead, but Maritime tied, took, and never lost the lead to the Panthers throughout the entirety of the second period. The longest Privateer rally came with Hayes serving as the rookie left-hander connected on three straight service aces to go along with a Lombardo kill.
 
The Privateers made quick work of the Panthers in the third set, as the squad disposed of their opponent by a 25-14 margin. After falling behind 2-0, Maritime stormed back on a pair of service aces by senior Charlotte Acklin (Lewes, Del./West Broward (Fla.)) to take a 3-2 lead. Maritime never relinquished the lead and held on for the 25-14 win.
 
In the second match of the day, the Privateers fell to the Mount St. Vincent Dolphins in straight sets. With its win over the Privateers, as well as the Panthers earlier in the day, Mount St. Vincent clinched the top seed in the Skyline Conference Tournament and home-court advantage throughout the league playoffs.
 
As for the match, the Privateers were led by Hayes with seven kills and three blocks. Brady contributed with five kills, while Lombardo had four kills and led the squad with four digs.
 
Bailey added 17 more assists, while she, Brady and Hayes all recorded one service ace apiece. Lombardo paved the way with three aces on the match.
 
Maritime took a quick 2-0 lead, after using the momentum from the previous match to take the early advantage. Mount St. Vincent answered back and tied the set at three before going on a strong rally to win the opening set by a 25-17 score.
 
In the second set, Mount St. Vincent took a 7-2 lead and put Maritime in an early hole that the Privateers were unable to dig out of. A lengthy Dolphin rally put Mount St. Vincent up by a 22-8 score, before polishing off the set at 25-12.
 
The third set once again saw Maritime fall behind by six points in the early stages. Mount St. Vincent ballooned its lead to 15-5, but Maritime clawed back into the match with a strong run of its own. Brady won back a point and possessions with a kill, while Lombardo followed with a service aces, three attacking errors by the Dolphins and another service ace from Lombardo made the score 15-11.
 
Maritime pulled to within two at both 17-15 and 18-16, but Mount St. Vincent pulled away late for the 25-17 set and three-set win to clinch the top seed in the tournament.
 
Maritime finishes the regular season at 16-14, with a 5-5 mark in Skyline Conference play. In doing so, Maritime became the first women's program in school history to finish a regular season above the .500 winning percentage mark. The team will gear up for the Skyline Conference First Round, slated to begin on Tuesday in Newburgh, N.Y.
 
Mount St. Vincent (15-13, 9-1 Skyline) will await an opponent with a first round bye and will not play again until a home match on Thursday, which will be determined by the outcome of the two first round matchups on Tuesday. Purchase (0-22, 0-10 Skyline) will prepare for the 2016 season.