Volleyball: Overpowered at Saint Anselm, Fall to Hawks, 3-1

MANCHESTER, N.H. (09/24/24) - The Franklin Pierce Ravens were taken down by the Hawks of Saint Anselm, 3-1, Tuesday night.  

RECORDS:

• FPU: 2-7  
• Saint Anselm: 5-7  

HOW IT HAPPENED: 

• The Hawks jumped out to an 11-5 lead over the Ravens. Hollyn Frano collected two kills and Sam Pila would grab three aces. As the set would continue, Saint Anselm would continue to apply the pressure to take the Hawks to a 19-12 advantage. The Ravens' Katholiki Koukia (Rhodes, Greece) would manage to notch one more kill in the set but dominance from Hawks' attacks would end the set in favor of the home team. 

• In the second set of the match Saint Anselm would continue to set the tone taking a 5-1 advantage. Franklin pierce would come up with a response off of a pair of errors from the Hawks. The Ravens would notch back-to-back points from Kennedie Manning (New Braunfels, Texas) late to keep the set alive, but the Hawks would finalize the victory.  

• Saint Anselm would open the third set on a 5-1 run, but the Franklin Pierce squad would find a response capitalizing off of errors from the home squad. The Ravens would go on a run on a kill from Avery LeBlanc (Exeter, R.I) and a service ace from Kori Garnhart (Colorado Springs, Colo.) to tie the set at 10s. From this point the Ravens would go on a 7-3 run to take a 17-13 lead behind a Manning kill, and a pair of kills from Koukia. The Hawks would continue to pressure late in the set but a couple of errors from them would lead the Ravens to the 25-19 victory.  

• The Hawks would begin the fourth set the same way as before, taking an early advantage. Franklin Pierce would have a response, bringing the set within four before the home team would explode on a 6-2 run. The two teams would continue to exchange points, but Saint Anselm would maintain their lead. Franklin Pierce made a last chance dig for momentum with a kill from Manning bringing the score within six, but the Hawks would be within set point on multiple kills. Frano would complete the task earning the Hawks to win by four by a final score of 25-17.  

INSIDE THE NUMBERS: 

• Koukia would lead the offense with 11 kills and 14 digs. LeBlanc followed behind with five kills, six digs and a block.  

• Defensively Garnhart and Julia Felgenhauer (Bolivar, Ohio) would each have 13 digs each. 

• Annaka Lindstrom (Dudley, Mass.) led the passing for the Ravens with 23 assists.  

• As a team the Hawks tallied 31 kills, 29 assists, 3 service aces, and 60 digs. 

UP NEXT FOR THE RAVENS: Franklin Pierce returns to action in just a few days when they travel to Bentley for their first offical NE10 conference game of the season. The match is set for 7 PM.