AUSTIN, Texas (September 5, 2015) – Junior Aiden Garcia (Eagle Pass, Texas) led all Ravens with 21 kills over two matches in the second day of the Hilltopper Classic. However, the effort fell just short as the Ravens lost both matchups 3-1. With the losses, Franklin Pierce drops to 1-3 on the season.

In the first match, the Ravens played Southwestern Oklahoma State University and started off with a 26-24 victory in set one. Garcia did her part once again, leading the Ravens in the first set win with four kills.

The Ravens would compete but were unable to overcome errors through the final three sets, dropping them 25-20, 25-18, and 25-21. Garcia would finish with 12 kills in the match, while freshman Katie Leidhold (Acushnet, Mass.) was the other Raven in double-digit kills with 10. Sophomore Hannah Runge (Deltona, Fla.) did her part in the offense with 36 assists, while senior Sarah MacHugh (Red Hook, N.Y.) took charge defensively leading all Ravens with 26 digs.

Southwestern Oklahoma State University was led by Paige Holt, who finished with a game-high 15 kills, while also hitting a game high .500 attack percentage. Carly Zak and Kelsi Schmidtberger each hit double-digit kills with 13 and 11, respectively, while Kayla Hebert tossed around 46 assists. Both Hebert and Zak would end up with double-doubles on the match.

Franklin Pierce would record 11 team blocks, with Garcia collecting seven blocks herself.

In their final match of the weekend, the Ravens faced off with hosts St. Edwards University. Just like match one, Franklin Pierce took the first set with a close score of 25-23. Sophomore Madison Klusendorf (Santa Maria, Calif.) led the charge in set one with five kills, and would finish with nine for the match.

The Ravens would once again fall off in the final three sets, dropping those 25-18, 25-22, and 25-20 to drop the match. Leidhold would show off her star power on offense leading the way with 14 kills for the match, while Runge showed her consistency passing out 37 assists. MacHugh led the way in digs with 25, while Leidhold and Klusendorf used double-digit kills to each record a double-double.

Katie Martin led the way with 22 kills for St. Edwards, while Alexa McAndrew and Hannah Rauch also slammed home double-digit kills. Jaclyn Billie tossed out 27 assists, along with teammate Julia Hartley passed out 19 assists. Morgan Beckham led all players for St. Edwards with 24 digs.

The Ravens return to the court next Friday, September 11 when they play two matches against Chestnut Hill and Wilmington at the Wildcat Invitational hosted by Wilmington University.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce volleyball apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).