Walker dishes out 22 assists

Box Score

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. (September 25, 2009) – Junior Megan Murray tallied a match-best 10 kills and posted a .444 hitting percentage on Friday night to lead Merrimack to a 3-0 victory over the Franklin Pierce University volleyball team in non-conference play at Volpe Gym. Senior Katie Ristow (Miami, Fla.) picked up 10 kills and four digs in the loss for Franklin Pierce.

Merrimack took the first set, 25-13 and was tested by Franklin Pierce in the second set before ultimately prevailing, 25-22. The Warriors finished the sweep by a 25-17 score in the third set.

With the win, Merrimack improves to 11-3 (0-1 Northeast-10), while Franklin Pierce falls to 3-9 (0-1 Northeast-10) with the loss.

For Franklin Pierce, Ristow led the way with 10 kills and posted a .250 hitting percentage over 28 attacks (three errors). Seniors Caitlynn Parnell (Medina, Texas) and Megan Feldmeth (South Pasadena, Calif.) contributed five kills apiece for the Ravens. Junior setter Pamela Walker (Chino Hills, Calif.) dished out 22 assists on the evening for Franklin Pierce. Defensively, junior libero Chelsie Kohout (Harrison Township, Mich.) led the way for the Ravens with eight digs, while Parnell led all players with a match-best four blocks (one solo).

For Merrimack, junior Molly Cindric joined Murray in double digits with 12 kills of her own. Murray’s .444 (two errors, 18 attempts) led all players (minimum five kills) and the Warriors led the offense through junior setter Elyse Lorenz, who finished with a match-high 28 assists. On the defensive side of the net, junior libero Alyssa Pickert led Merrimack with 13 digs while Murray picked up a pair of blocks (one solo). Freshman Natalee Yeazle served up a match-high four aces.

Merrimack hit .343 with 17 kills and five errors in 35 attempts on their way to the 25-13, first-set victory and never looked back. The Warriors finished the evening with a .274 hitting percentage (40 kills, 14 errors, 95 attempts) to only a .043 mark (26 kills, 22 errors, 94 attempts) for Franklin Pierce.

The Ravens return to the court on Saturday, Sept. 25, when they travel to Massachusetts Lowell for a pair of matches. Franklin Pierce will take on the host River Hawks in a Northeast-10 Conference contest at 11 a.m. and face off with Dowling at 1 p.m. in a non-conference affair. Franklin Pierce next plays at home on Sept. 29 against Southern New Hampshire at 7 p.m.