Ravens frontline collects 10 blocks

RINDGE, N.H. (November 6, 2012) – Freshman middle Lina Kleinschmidt (Santa Barbara, Calif.) tied for the match lead with nine kills as well as a .333 attack percentage while factoring in on five blocks on Tuesday night to lead the Franklin Pierce University volleyball team to a 3-0 win over American International in Northeast-10 Conference play at the Fieldhouse. The win clinched home-court advantage for Franklin Pierce in the quarterfinal round of the Northeast-10 Championship, scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 13.

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 18-13 (11-3 Northeast-10), while American International falls to 15-13 (7-7 Northeast-10). Franklin Pierce swept to the victory with set scores of 25-21, 25-22 and 25-15.

Already leading 2-0, the Ravens held an 11-10 lead in the third set when they went on a spurt that effectively put the match away. A kill by junior setter Stephanie Svorinic (Scottsdale, Ariz.) and back-to-back aces by junior outside hitter Natasha Ray (Colorado Springs, Colo.), one off the head of AIC sophomore outside hitter Vanessa Ruiz, kicked off an 8-2 stretch that also featured a pair of kills from freshman outside hitter Sydni Schulz (Cypress, Texas). The quick run would prove to be part of a longer, 14-5 run that finished out the match.

For Franklin Pierce, junior middle Katie Jackson (Centennial, Colo.) also hit .333 to join Kleinschmidt, with seven kills against one error over 18 attempts. Joining in on the three-pronged Ravens attack was Ray, who added eight kills of her own. Franklin Pierce ran the offense through the set of Svorinic, who dished out 23 assists. Ray led all players with three aces.

On the other side of the net, junior libero Lauren Miller (Alexandria, Ind.) led the back row with 11 digs, while Ray added eight more. The story of the defensive efforts for Franklin Pierce was the front row, however, as the Ravens piled up 10 blocks as a team. After Kleinschmidt's five block assists, both Ray and Jackson figured in on four blocks (one solo for Jackson), while junior right side Ashley Bruce (Hampton Falls, N.H.) collected three block assists.

For AIC, sophomore middle Phoebe Lettington and freshman outside hitter Bailey Swan led the team with nine kills each, while freshman middle Britt Bryant added seven more. However, Bryant's .200 attack percentage led the team, as the Yellow Jackets hit just .080, with 35 kills and 26 errors over 113 attempts, on the evening. AIC ran the offense through graduate student setter Kervelle Redhead, who piled up a match-best 32 assists.

Defensively for the Yellow Jackets, freshman libero Franny Sanchez led all players with 13 digs, while Redhead added 11 to complete her double-double. Up front, AIC mustered just four blocks, with Redhead and Bryant collecting a pair of block assists each.

The Ravens return to the court on Saturday, Nov. 10, when they wrap up the regular season with a trip to Assumption for a Northeast-10 Conference contest. First serve is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Laska Gymnasium in Worcester, Mass.

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' brand new online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).