RINDGE, N.H. (November 7, 2015) – Senior Sarah MacHugh (Red Hook, N.Y.) put herself into the single-game record books on Saturday afternoon, as she stepped up big in her final regular season home game with 40 digs. That number ties the second most digs in a single match in program history, falling one short of the single game record as the Franklin Pierce University Ravens defeated the Assumption College Greyhounds in comeback fashion, 3-2 at the Fieldhouse.

With the win, the Ravens improved to 17-8 (11-1 Northeast-10) maintaining second place in the conference standings. With the loss, Assumption drops to 7-16 overall (3-9 Northeast-10).

The first set was not kind to the Ravens, as Assumption came out swinging against the regionally-ranked crimson and grey. The Greyhounds were able to hit just shy of .300 for the set, while also converting 11-of-16 side-out opportunities. Franklin Pierce never came within striking distance of a lead in the set, as Assumption put away the Ravens 25-16 to go up 1-0 in the match.

The Greyhounds found some rhythm in set two as well, as they were able to keep up with the Ravens point for point controlling most of the tempo. After a kill from freshman Abigail Sonuga (Haverhill, Mass.) tying things up at 23-23, Assumption found a way to win. An attack error from Franklin Pierce put things at set for point for the Greyhounds, and a kill from Tara Rielly shut the door on the Ravens. The kill would give Assumption the 25-23 win, and 2-0 lead in the match.

That's when things began to turn around for Franklin Pierce, as it seemed things would end early after trailing 14-12 mid-way through. However, five straight points from Franklin Pierce put them in the driver's seat now with a 17-14 lead. Thanks to dueling kills between freshman Katie Leidhold (Acushnet, Mass.) and sophomore Hannah St. Jean (Olympia, Wash.) along with Assumption errors, the Ravens were able to squeak out the 25-23 win to keep the match alive, putting things at 3-1.

Set four brought much of the same play, as neither team could gain breathing room with a lead. The biggest lead wouldn't come until the match was 23-20 in favor of the Greyhounds. With their backs against the wall after a called timeout, Franklin Pierce stepped up once again thanks to multiple kills from St. Jean and ran off five straight points again, completely changing momentum and once again keeping the match alive. The Ravens would take the set 25-23, tying things up at 2-2, forcing a fifth and deciding set.

Nothing could compare to the barnburner fifth set, as it represented the entire match as a whole. Riding the momentum to an early lead at 8-4, Franklin Pierce once again faltered after the side switch allowing Assumption to run off five points in a row of their own, taking a 9-8 lead. However, the Ravens held strong after tying things back up at 11-11 and ran with the momentum to a win. Thanks to three Greyhound errors and a final kill from Leidhold to cap the set, the Ravens would take the 15-12 win and 3-2 match win in tremendous comeback fashion.

Defense certainly owned the spotlight for the Ravens, as MacHugh led the way while Leidhold and sophomore Madison Klusendorf (Santa Maria, Calif.) each topped 20 digs as well. Leidhold showed the best all-around game on the day, leading Franklin Pierce in kills with 18, while Klusendorf didn't trail by much 10, as each notched a double-double.

Sophomore setter Hannah Runge (Deltona, Fla.) had herself a game, collecting 54 assists and 16 digs for a double-double as well. Other notable performances came from senior Catherine Purdy (Ossining, N.Y.) who ended her day with 13 digs, and junior Aiden Garcia (Eagle Pass, Texas) finished with 12 kills on the match.

For Assumption, Tara Reilly smashed a match-high 21 kills and had a hand in seven of the team's 12 blocks in dominating fashion. Not to be outdone defensively, Maria Chrisom snatched 40 digs as well, while Kiki Romanik tossed out 48 assists. Goyette was the only Greyhound with a double-double, finishing with 10 digs as well.

The Ravens now hit the road next weekend for their two final regular season matchups, first heading to top-seeded Adelphi on Friday, November 13. Game time is set for 7 p.m.

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).