THROGGS NECK, NY – The Maritime College volleyball team began Skyline Conference play by hosting Yeshiva on Sunday morning.  The Privateers (1-1, 1-0 Skyline) held off a Yeshiva rally in the first set, then came back from an 8-2 deficit in the third to notch a 25-22, 25-18, 25-19 victory over the Maccabees (0-5, 0-4 Skyline) at Riesenberg Gymnasium.

There were 10 ties and three lead changes in a back-and-forth first set.  Maritime used a 7-0 spurt to build a 16-9 cushion, but Yeshiva responded with an 11-4 run to tie it at 20-20.  After the Privateers regained the lead, 23-22, back-to-back hitting errors by the Maccabees gave Maritime the set, 25-22.

Celyna Custodio (Danbury, CT) slammed a kill to open the second set, then Brooke Kirchner (Lawrence, NY) served nine consecutive points, as the Privateers jumped out to a 10-0 advantage.  Maritime led 16- when Yeshiva went on a 5-1 run to cut its deficit to five points, 17-12.  However, kills by Kirchner and Erica Pagano (Lawrence, NY), followed by a Kelly Kuhn (Lansdale, PA) service ace brought the margin back to eight, 20-12, and the Privateers took the set by a 25-18 count.

In the third set, it was Yeshiva that took the early lead, as the Maccabees scored eight of the first 10 points.  The Privateers battled back, though, pulling ahead 14-13 on a kill by Jessica Mele (Southold, NY).  It was 19-19 when Custodio ripped a kill to give Maritime the lead for good.  The Privateers scored the final six points of the match, with four coming on Custodio kills and the other two on Kirchner aces.  With the 25-19 third-set win, Maritime completed the sweep and earned its first victory of the season.

Custodio finished with a match-high 18 kills on .600 hitting, while Kirchner had a double-double with 22 assists and 10 aces.  As a team, the Privateers tallied 14 aces.  Pagano recorded six kills, and Carolina Bersani (Bronx, NY) recorded a team-best nine digs.  Maritime hit .061 (30 kills, 24 errors, 98 attempts) as a team.

Daniella Rothman had four kills for the Maccabees.  Tali Miller added three kills and three assists, while Ashley Botnick led Yeshiva with seven digs.  As a team, the Maccabees hit .031 (13-11-65) in the match.

Maritime now has a 10-day break before returning to action.  The Privateers welcome Mount St. Vincent (0-0, 0-0 Skyline) to Riesenberg Gymnasium at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 21.