Ravens play twice again on Saturday

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (September 7, 2012) – Junior outside hitter Natasha Ray (Colorado Springs, Colo.) had 15 kills over two matches on Friday, while sophomore outside hitter Catie Swiderski (Rocky Point, N.Y.) added 13 more, but the Franklin Pierce University volleyball team dropped a pair of matches on the first day of the Mountain Lion Invitational, hosted by Colorado Colorado Springs at Gallogly Events Center. Franklin Pierce was swept, 3-0, by both host UCCS and Midwestern State.

With the losses, Franklin Pierce falls to 3-3 (0-2 Northeast-10). With the win, UCCS improved to 2-3 (0-0 Rocky Mountain). With its win, Midwestern State improved to 2-4 (0-0 Lone Star). Franklin Pierce wraps up play at the Mountain Lion Invitational on Saturday, when it faces Fort Lewis at 11 a.m. (EDT) and Wayne State (Neb.) at 6:30 p.m.

In the first match of the day, Franklin Pierce was swept by UCCS, 25-15, 25-23, 25-22. Later, Midwestern State bettered the Ravens, 25-21, 26-24, 25-23.

Against the Mountain Lions of UCCS, junior right side Ashley Bruce (Hampton Falls, N.H.) hit a team-best .222 while putting away eight kills, which was matched by Ray. Swiderski added six kills and a pair of aces. The offense ran through the set of junior Stephanie Svorinic (Scottsdale, Ariz.), who dished out 16 assists.

Defensively, junior libero Lauren Miller (Alexandria, Ind.) led the team with 18 digs, while Swiderski joined her in double digits with 12. At the net, freshman middle Lina Kleinschmidt (Santa Barbara, Calif.) had a pair of block assists.

For the host Mountain Lions, freshman outside hitter Jordan Banich led all players with 10 kills, while senior middle Amy Elinspahr hit a match-best .462 with seven kills and just one error in 13 attempts. Senior middle Megan Koop added seven kills of her own. The trio, as well as the rest of the UCCS attack, worked off the dual set of freshman Grace Gordon (match-best 18 assists) and senior Lindsey Stich (16 assists).

On the other side of the net, freshman outside hitter Kim Catlett led the team with 14 digs, and freshman defensive specialist Katie Maguire had eight more. Up front, senior middle Nikki Kinzer racked up four block assists.

Against Midwestern State, Kleinschmidt paced the offense by hitting .333 with eight kills and two errors over 18 attempts. Both Ray and Swiderski added seven kills each for the Ravens. Junior middle Katie Jackson (Centennial, Colo.) hit .444 with five kills over nine attempts. In the second match, Franklin Pierce ran the offense through both Svorinic (19 assists) and freshman setter Kellee Cranston (Reno, Nev.), who finished with 12 assists.

Defensively, Miller led the team with 12 digs, while Ray added 11 more. At the net, a trio of Ravens figured in on four blocks each: Kleinschmidt had two solo and two assisted, and Jackson and freshman outside hitter Madison Duffy (Bethel, Conn.) had four block assists each. Swiderski added three more blocks (one solo), as Franklin Pierce racked up 10 blocks as a team.

For the Mustangs, it was senior outside hitter Shelbi Stewart who led the way, as she registered 30 attempts and rang up 14 kills against just three errors along the way to hitting a match-best .367 (minimum 10 attempts). She was the only Midwestern State player to reach double digits, though sophomore middle Kasey Decker (9 kills) and junior middle Caitlin Wallace (8) were not far behind. The Mustangs worked off the set of sophomore Kristan Aduddell, who dished out a match-best 35 assists.

On the other side of the net, sophomore defensive specialist Casey Fletcher led three players in double figures with 13 assists. Stewart added 10 digs to finish off her double-double, while junior middle Brandi Flores recorded 10 as well. Up front, three different Mustangs had three block assists each: Decker, Wallace and junior middle Michelle Blount.

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).