NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. (September 18, 2018) – The Franklin Pierce University volleyball team battled valiantly on Tuesday evening almost coming back from a 2-0 deficit before falling 3-2 (16-25, 24-26, 25-14, 25-22, 12-15) to Merrimack College. With the win, the Warriors even up their conference record at 1-1 while the Ravens dropped their second setback of the conference slate. 

Senior libero Brittney Carias (Burlingame, Calif.) became the 8th member of the programs 1,000 dig club as she tallied 12 digs in the match. Her 1,000th career dig came late in the third set, she currently has 1,006 digs and is only 18 away from passing Emily Schultz (2005-08) for seventh all-time. Carias also showed off her serving prowess as she produced a game-best five aces which puts her only two away for 100 in her career.

Junior middle blocker Abigail Garnhart (Colorado Springs, Colo.) was unstoppable on the evening as she smashed a career-high 21 kills while hitting .528. Her previous career-best was 12 kills versus Saint Rose on November 11, 2017, and the team captain matched it this year at Wilmington (Del.) on September 8th.

Junior outside hitter Sarah Roach (Provo, Utah) was the only other Raven to chip in double-digit kills (17). She also added a team-best 19 digs. Mary Pease (East Haddam, Conn.) set a new personal-best with 47 assists in the setback.

As a team, the Ravens outhit (.181-to-.138) and out-blocked (11-to-8) the Warriors, but the hosts made FPU pay during serve/receive as the Ravens recorded 13 return errors.

Merrimack pushed ahead 4-0 in the early stages of the first set with three Raven errors contributing to their advantage. A Rosie Sperduto service error and a dual block by Abigail Garnhart and Roach cut the deficit to 4-2. A 6-1 Merrimack scoring binge pushed them in front 10-3 as more miscues piled up for FPU. The Ravens looked to stop the Warriors momentum with a timeout and immediately notched a point as Roach rose up and slammed the ball near the end line to bring it to a six-point deficit.  A Carias kill brought down the host advantage to 11-7, but four consecutive points by MC grew the score back to seven points at 14-7. Trailing by nine, Abigail Garnhart accounted for three of the Ravens four straight points, two via kills from the middle and one by a solo block to make the score 19-14. The Warriors closed the opening set by holding the Crimson and Grey to only two more points.

FPU notched the first points of the second set as Abigail Garnhart killed off an attempt from the right pin then her and Pease teamed up for a double block to give the Ravens a 2-0 advantage. Merrimack regained the lead at 4-3 via a Raven attack error. Jocelyn Moody (Biddeford, Maine) brought the Ravens within two 7-5 as Pease set her up for an easy kill from the outside. The Warriors continued to build an edge until a Roach kill and two attack errors brought the deficit to 15-12. A kill by Katelyn Marr pressed the Warriors on the brink of a second set victory at 24-16. The Ravens showed relentlessness by recording eight straight points to tie the set 24-24. Abigail Garnhart and Roach came up huge with a double block then Carias dropped in a service ace to bring it to a 24-20 game. Two Roach kills, another Carias ace that caromed off Brooke Leestma's hands and an Abigail Garnhart kill made it 24-24. Kara Haase and a bad Raven set put Merrimack ahead 2-0.

The Ravens built up a 9-3 edge in the third set on the strength of two Abigail Garnhart kills, two service aces and a couple of Merrimack miscues. Merrimack brought the Pierce advantage down to three, 12-9, but the Ravens opened up the set by notching nine straight points with Carias serving to lead 21-9. Pease concluded the set when she one handed the game-winning kill at 25-14.

In the fourth set, the Ravens led 6-5 as Roach pummeled the ball from the left pin and into the floor, a Breanna Mineweaser (Honey Brook, Pa.) and Corinne McCarthy (Kalamazoo, Mich.) block combined with a Mineweaser kill upped the Raven score to 8-5. A Brroke Leestman ace brought the score to 11-10 until a Pease kill upped the Raven advantage to 12-10. The Warriors knotted the set via a Raven attack error at 13-13. Franklin Pierce outscored Merrimack 4-1 over the course of the next five serves with a Mineweaser block into the middle of the court increased the lead to 18-14. Both squads traded points back and forth before the hosts pulled within two, 23-21. A Roach attack error made it a one-point game, 23-22, but she atoned for her mistake and rattled off back to back kills as the match was sent to a fifth set and deciding set.

Merrimack took a 3-2 lead in the fifth set when Sydney Buran roped the ball to the open spot on the left side of the floor. Possessions were traded back and forth until Merrimack tallied the eighth point on a Sofia Bassuri kill that forced the side change. A Kayla Zinser kill that fell in the back right corner gave the home team a 9-7 lead. After a timeout, a Raven block error added a point to the Merrimack lead at 10-7. Kayla Zinser rocketed an ace to increase the edge to 12-8 forcing the Ravens into their final timeout. An Abigail Garnhart kill and a Basauri attack error brought the Raven deficit to two, 12-10. Roach and Mineweaser kept it at a two-point game via kills before Sophie Meyers won the game for Merrimack.

Catherine Flaherty led the Warriors with 14 kills. Amanda Cain was the standout on defense with 21 digs.

The Ravens are still in search for their first conference win when they return to The Fieldhouse on Saturday and host Stonehill College at 4:00 p.m.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://fpuravens.com). 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 apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://fpuravens.com/store). You can also follow the volleyball program on Twitter (https://twitter.com/FPURavensVB) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/fpuravensvb/).