Parnell leads the Ravens with 25 kills in the two matches

Boxscore vs. Philadelphia
Boxscore at Post

WATERBURY, Conn. (October 27, 2007) – Franklin Pierce University, ranked eighth in this week’s NCAA Div. II Northeast Regional poll, split a pair of non-conference women’s volleyball matches on Saturday at a tri-match on the campus of Post University. The Ravens began the day by losing a tough five-game match to Philadelphia University, 3-2 (21-30, 30-20, 28-30, 30-19, 15-12), but the Ravens rebounded to take a 3-0 (30-27, 30-15, 30-21) win from host Post University in the night cap to earn the split.

In the opener against Philadelphia, Franklin Pierce posted its second highest kill total (71) and third-best hitting percentage (.278) of the season, led by a match-high 17 kills, 11 digs and three blocks from sophomore Caitlynn Parnell (Medina, Texas/Medina). The Ravens also received excellent offensive efforts from sophomore Megan Feldmeth (South Pasadena, Calif./South Pasadena), who posted 14 kills on .414 hitting and three blocks, and classmate Katie Ristow (Miami, Fla./Miami Killian Senior HS), who had 13 kills on .400 hitting, a team-high 17 digs and four service aces.

The Ravens took the first and third games against the Lady Rams but could not capture the victory. Franklin Pierce played nearly flawlessly in the first game with 23 kills and only four errors in 37 attacks (.514), but Philadelphia responded with 15 kills in game two to even the match at one. After the teams split the next two games, the teams combined for 18 kills and only three errors in the deciding fifth game. Franklin Pierce scored three consecutive points to tie the score as 12, but the Lady Rams responded to score the final three points and take the match.

The Ravens rebounded in their second match of the day, however, earning an easy 3-0 victory over Post.

Michelle Koike (San Francisco, Calif./Gonzaga University) led the Ravens against the Eagles, posting nine kills on a .462 hitting percentage and adding a match-high four blocks. Feldmeth also had nine kills, while Parnell and junior co-captain Nicole Buchholz (Ashburn, Va./Stone Bridge) both had eight kills for Franklin Pierce. Junior co-captain Karissa Hookstadt (Camarillo, Calif./Camarillo) also performed well for the visitors, posting 34 assists against Post after having 36 assists in the opening match against Philadelphia.

The visitors continued their excellent offensive play, recording 43 kills on a season-high .306 hitting percentage, including a .520 clip (16 kills on 25 attempts) in a 30-15 game two. In that second game, Franklin Pierce used a huge 15-2 run that turned a 6-3 lead into an insurmountable 21-5 edge, and the team used another big run that began at 15-all and ended with the Ravens holding a comfortable 27-18 advantage to take the third and final game.

Franklin Pierce (17-15, 9-4 NE-10), which finishes its season-high eight-match road trip with a record of 4-4, finally returns home for the Ravens’ 2007 regular season finale on Tuesday at 7 p.m. against Northeast-10 foe American International. The Ravens will host “Dig for the Cure” night against the Yellow Jackets to benefit the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation.