National women’s volleyballer Josanne Lewis was named Championship MVP after leading Second-seeded John Jay College of Criminal Justice to its first CUNYAC women’s volleyball championship with a 3-1 win over top-seeded Hunter College at the Hunter Sportsplex in the USA over the weekend.
Lewis, daughter of former men’s national volleyballer and coach, Urvin Lewis, won the award after totalling 18 kills and 10 digs in last Friday’s final. Set scores were 25-17, 25-11, 21-25, 25-22. The Bloodhounds, with a record of 22 wins and six losses, earn the CUNYAC’s automatic berth to the 2024 NCAA Division III Women’s Volleyball Championship.
John Jay, which was making its fourth appearance in the CUNYAC final in the past seven seasons, stopped a run of two straight Hunter (21-9) titles, and the Hawks have won eight of the last nine and a conference-record 28 titles. The Bloodhounds avenged a 3-1 loss to the Hawks in last season’s final.
The Bloodhounds opened up a 10-5 lead in the first set and closed out a first set win with the final four points. The second set was all John Jay, as it scored 14 of the final 17 points of the set, turning an 11-8 win into a 25-11 victory.
Hunter staved off elimination in the third, taking control with the set tied 19-19 with five straight points. The Hawks led the fourth set 16-15 before a 7-0 Bloodhound run put the guests in front 22-16. A Madison Reyes kill closed out the set and the match. (www.cunyathletics.com)
