Lehman College Athletics

The City University of New York Athletic Conference announced its year-end women’s volleyball awards on Tuesday morning, and the Lehman College women’s volleyball team was well represented. Libero Jillian Acevedo who has been a member of the Lightning for three seasons and has become a staple of the team, was named a first team all-star. In addition, she was an overwhelming choice for the Sportsmanship Award. Her on-court demeanor and support of teammates and opponents is a shining example and model of a true sportsman. Her teammate, standout Gerri-Ann Martin, was also given all-star praise, as she was named a first team all-star as well.

Acevedo, serving as the team’s libero this season, was a tremendous on-court leader. She played in 100 of the 106 sets the Lightning played in during the 09’ campaign, and she performed beautifully. Her 451 digs led the team, and her 89 assists were good for second on the squad. In addition, her 34 service aces were good for fifth-best on the team.

The Lehman College women’s volleyball team will be aiming for a CUNYAC championship tomorrow at the Nat Holman Gymnasium when the No. 4 seeded Lightning take on the No. 1 seeded Bearcats of Baruch College in the semifinal round of the 2009 CUNYAC Women’s Volleyball Tournament. Start-time for the match is slated for 3:00pm.

The Lightning advanced to the semifinals by defeating the Dolphins of the College of Staten Island in the quarterfinals this past Tuesday evening at the APEX Center by scores of 25-18, 25-8, and 25-22. The victory for the surging Lightning was the team’s fifth win in its last seven matches. Lehman will hope to keep that momentum going tomorrow against the mighty Bearcats. Lightning head coach Wolfgang Lucena knows Baruch College poses a challenge for his hungry squad.

The Lehman College women’s volleyball team will enter the 2009 CUNYAC Tournament as the No. 4 seed after finishing their regular season with an overall record of 11-17 on the season, including a mark of 6-3 in the conference. The Lightning’s opponent in the quarterfinal round of the tourney will be the Dolphins of the College of Staten Island who come in as the No. 5 seed after completing their regular season with a record of 12-15 and a mark of 5-4 in CUNYAC contests. The match will take place tomorrow evening at the APEX Center, with match-time scheduled for 7:00pm.

The Lehman-CSI confrontation will be the third consecutive meeting in the quarterfinal round dating back to 2007. In 07’, the CSI eliminated the Lightning in three sets, but Lehman extracted revenge the following season, ousting the Dolphins in four sets. Now, in 09’, the two lock horns again with a lot on the line.

Box Score

The Lehman College women’s volleyball team (11-16 Overall, 6-3 CUNYAC) picked up its third consecutive victory, defeating the Bloodhounds of John Jay College (8-21 Overall, 4-5 CUNYAC) by scores of 25-20, 25-18, and 28-26 Tuesday evening at John Jay’s Doghouse in New York, NY. The victory for The Lightning clinched Lehman a quarterfinal round home contest in the 2009 CUNYAC Women’s Volleyball Tournament.

In the victory, the Lightning were led by standout Gerri-Ann Martin who put forth one of her best matches of the season as she recorded a match-high 19 kills to go along with 11 digs and five service aces. For the evening, she hit .395 in 38 attempts. Setter Lisa Jagdeo also contributed in a big way as she recorded a match-high 28 assists to go along with nine digs and four kills, and veteran Jillian Acevedo added 13 digs and four assists. For the evening, the Lightning hit .218 compared to just .094 for the Bloodhounds.