Deadly combo comes to life, Volleyball drops Stonehill 3-2

EASTON, Mass. (October 15, 2015) – Junior Aiden Garcia (Eagle Pass, Texas) and freshman Katie Leidhold (Acushnet, Mass.) combined for 33 total kills in a five-set marathon as the Franklin Pierce University Volleyball team defeated the Stonehill College Skyhawks by a final of 3-2 at Merkert Gymnasium on Thursday night.

With the win, the Ravens get back to their winning ways and improve to 10-6 on the season (4-1 Northeast-10) while Stonehill drops to 7-11 (2-6 Northeast-10). Franklin Pierce now sits in a tie for third in the conference standings with Southern New Hampshire and LeMoyne, while Bentley and Adelphi sit as the top two teams.

Both teams would exchange points throughout a majority of the first set until the Ravens were able to grab a significant four point lead, 20-16 late in the set. That lead would only shrink once again, as Stonehill then put together three straight points to pull back within one, 20-19. That comeback would stop right there, as the Ravens then put up four points in a row for a five point lead, the largest of the set. Franklin Pierce would shut the door and win the set 25-20 to go up 1-0

Set two saw the Skyhawks come alive, as everything they hit seemed to find the floor. Stonehill's Marykay Nasby led the team with four kills in the set, while four others totaled three. The purple and black led throughout the whole set, taking a commanding 25-18 win to tie things up at 1-1.

Franklin Pierce then had an answer for Stonehill in set three, as the Ravens turned the tables on the scoreboard and found complete domination. Garcia and Leidhold both went off, combining for 11 kills in the set, including Garcia going 6-for-8 on attacks. Franklin Pierce jumped ahead with help of a nine-point streak en route to a 14-4 lead in the middle of the set. Stonehill would cut things to 19-11, only to have the Ravens take off again spinning off five straight points to end the set, capped by a huge combo block by Garcia and sophomore Hannah St. Jean (Olympia, Wash.).

Set four had a lot of the same characteristics of set one, with both teams trading points throughout. However this time, Stonehill would capitalize on some early Franklin Pierce errors, and were able to maintain a lead. The Ravens put together a strong run at the end of the set to come within one point, 23-22, and would trade points again to make the score 24-23. But Stonehill had the final say, and were able to top Franklin Pierce as Nasby clinched the set, 25-23, to force a fifth and final deciding set.

Only two other times during the season has Franklin Pierce played five sets to decide a match, each time prevailing for the win. That stat would not change after Thursday night, as the Ravens took control of the set after falling behind 3-1 early. They would only allow two other Skyhawk points, as they went on a 14-2 run to shut down Stonehill for the 15-5 win, and winning the match 3-2.

Leidhold led the offense with 17 kills, while Garcia smashed 16 and had an attack percentage of .577. While both had strong offensive games, each provided strong contributions elsewhere in the Ravens gameplan. Leidhold found her way to 20 digs for another double-double, while Garcia added to a strong front game at the net with her hand in five of the team's eight blocks on the night.

Franklin Pierce showed off a strong defense, as four players amassed double-digit digs, and two over 20 with Leidhold and senior Sarah MacHugh (Red Hook, N.Y.) leading the team in the category with 24. Senior Catherine Purdy (Ossining, N.Y.) and sophomore Madison Klusendorf (Santa Maria, Calif.) each collected 16 digs on the night. The offense was strong thanks to great passing by sophomore setter Hannah Runge (Deltona, Fla.) with 42 assists on the night.

For Stonehill, Nasby led the charge with 12 kills, while Katherine Delanty was just behind with 11 kills. Kelsey Weymouth led the way for the Skyhawks in digs with 25, while setter Taylor Stevens tossed around a match-high 44 assists.

The Ravens return to the court this Tuesday, October 20 when they return home to Rindge to take on Merrimack at 7 p.m. that starts a four-match homestand.

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).