PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. (November 14, 2015) – Freshman Abigail Sonuga (Haverhill, Mass.) showed off her court presence on Saturday afternoon, as she slammed home a team-leading 18 kills as the Franklin Pierce University Ravens Volleyball team defeated the Pace University Setters by a final score of 3-2 at the Goldstein Fitness Center.

With the win, the Ravens end their regular season on a high note, finishing at 18-9 overall (12-2 Northeast-10) and clinch the second seed for the conference tournament. With the loss, Pace drops to 14-19 overall (6-8 Northeast-10) and finds themselves amongst a hazy postseason outlook.

Out of the gate, both teams were at even strength and unable to gain an advantage. Pace was able to break the ice and jump out to a 15-11 lead midway through, giving them the edge they needed going forward. Back-to-back kills from Sydney Lecker made things 21-15, causing Franklin Pierce to burn their final timeout of the set.

The Ravens charged back, with multiple kills from their four powerhouses of the day in Sonuga, freshman Katie Leidhold (Acushnet, Mass.), sophomore Hannah St. Jean (Olympia, Wash.), and junior Aiden Garcia (Eagle Pass, Texas). The quad pulled things within two at 24-22, but could not go further, as a Ravens attack error gave Pace the final point they needed to take the set, 25-22, and take the 1-0 advantage.

Franklin Pierce then made a statement in set two, taking off on a streak after being tied 7-7 early on. Back-to-back kills from Sonuga would get the ball rolling and aid the Ravens in taking up to a seven point lead at 24-17, ultimately shutting the door for an eight-point victory, 25-17 to tie things up at 1-1.

Set three fell back into the way of the Setters, as they ran with an early lead and could not be stopped. Multiple Franklin Pierce errors led to the demise, as the Setters eventually found themselves with a 12-point lead at 23-11. Only two points from gaining a win, Pace fell back on their heels a bit, allowing Franklin Pierce to run off a five point run to bring things to 23-16. But the Setters would answer the call, putting away the Ravens 25-17 taking the match advantage 2-1.

Needing a win in set four to push the match to a deciding fifth set, the Ravens solved the puzzle just in time and put everything together. With a see-saw battle at the start of the set, the Ravens took advantage pulling out to a seven-point advantage 21-14 before Pace took a timeout. The stoppage would calm things down for the Setters, and help them make a comeback. Pace then came at the Ravens with an 8-1 run to tie the set at 22-22.

From there, both teams would trade points down the stretch, until the Ravens found the opening as sophomore Madison Klusendorf (Santa Maria, Calif.) put home a kill to push the score to 26-25. The following point came from an attack error from Pace, giving the Ravens the tough-fought win in set four, 27-25 to force a fifth set.

Six times this season, the Ravens have played to a fifth set, and have won each of those six matches. Franklin Pierce would continue that perfect record, as they would take the fifth set to go 7-0 in the regular season when going to five sets. A quick 6-1 lead would give the Ravens the momentum, as they would take advantage of Pace errors and receive valuable offensive pressure from their power four. Franklin Pierce would close things out at 15-9, taking the 3-2 match win.

Complementing the offense throughout the match was a defense led by senior Sarah MacHugh (Red Hook, N.Y.), who led in digs with 21, while fellow senior Catherine Purdy (Ossining, N.Y.) chipped in with 19. Leidhold notched another double-double this season adding 16 digs, while freshman Brittany Carias (Burlingame, Calif.) added in valuable time on the floor with 14 digs. The team put together 10 blocks, with Sonuga putting in a hand in five. Sophomore Hannah Runge (Deltona, Fla.) had another career-game, putting together 53 assists on the match as the main facilitator for the offense.

For Pace, Claudia Fontanet knocked down a match-high 25 kills and snagged 23 digs to complete a double-double, while Lecker added 11. Sara Anastasi and Mira Wallace split the assists, with Anastasi tossed out 33, while Wallace passed around 24. Rebecca Italiano notched 30 digs for the Setters to add on to Fontanet's brilliance.

The Ravens return to the court this Tuesday, November 17 when they will play host to a Northeast-10 Quarterfinal matchup at the Fieldhouse. Time and opponent are yet to be determined.

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).