Game Notes

The (RV) Franklin & Marshall volleyball team (21-4, 7-1 CC) concludes the 2024 regular season with a pair of Centennial Conference matches, traveling to McDaniel on Wednesday before hosting #3 Johns Hopkins to conclude the regular season.

Last Time Out

The (RV) Franklin & Marshall volleyball team went 2-1 last week with a four-set loss to Swarthmore (25-18, 18-25, 23-25, 18-25) on Wednesday that ended a seven-match win streak and 7-0 start to Centennial Conference matches, while on Saturday the Diplomats wrapped up non-conference competition with wins over Misericordia (25-18, 25-22, 26-28, 25-14) and Elizabethtown (25-9, 25-17, 25-14). In the loss to Swarthmore, Avery Grantham totaled five block assists and seven kills, while Liah Perez had 18 assists and two aces. Mikayla Smith led the team with four aces in the loss. Smith went on to have five aces against Elizabethtown, while Gianna Mangiamele (12 kills, .450 hitting percentage), Coco Shultz (nine kills, .467 hitting percentage), and Ceci Connolly (nine kills, .375 hitting percentage) were strong in attack. Perez proved 33 assists and three aces in the match. Mangiamele hit .303 with 16 kills in the match against Misericordia, while Perez assisted 39 times. Smith again totaled five aces, while Bella Ganfield set a single-match career high with 20 digs. 

Last Time vs. McDaniel

F&M earned the program's fifth straight victory over the Green Terror with a straight-set sweep (25-20, 25-19, 25-14) at home last November. Meredith Mangum became the program's 22nd player to eclipse 1,000 digs in the match, as she led the team with 15. In attack, Gianna Mangiamele, Rei Baker, and Sydney Levins each had eight kills. Jada West led in blocks with four block assists, while Hannah McCarthy posted 15 assists with two aces. Set one saw F&M behind 5-7 before using a 7-0 run to get back in front. McDaniel was able to tie the set back at 14-14, but F&M took the next four points, a gap that was roughly maintained to set point. A close start to set two saw the Diplomats ahead 8-7 when they went on a 5-0 run. Ahead 16-14, they used a four-point run to build a comfortable cushion, winning the set 25-19 on a Liah Perez ace. F&M broke out to an 11-4 lead  and kept a consistent margin around that mark, winning the match on a Sydney Levins kill at 25-14. 

Last Time vs. Johns Hopkins

The #9 Blue Jays earned a four-set win (26-24, 18-25, 19-25, 13-25) over the Diplomats last November to pick up their sixth-straight win over F&M. Levins totaled 13 kills to lead the Diplomats, while West had one solo block and five block assists. Liah Perez totaled 16 assists. Set one was close early, with F&M ahead just 6-5 and 9-8. At the 9-8 scoreline, the Diplomats pulled away via a 9-2 run to get to 18-10. The Blue Jays stormed back via a nine-point run of their own to get within a point. F&M soon found themselves down 23-24 but earned the next three points to claim set one. Johns Hopkins took the lead at 1-2 and never looked back in set two. F&M got within two points on two occasions (11-13, 18-20), but Hopkins finished the set on a five-point run. The Diplomats were ahead 8-5 to begin the third set when the Blue Jays took the next four points. F&M found themselves tied at 12-12, but Johns Hopkins took six of the next seven points and held this margin to set point. F&M was down two points at 9-11 in set four, but Johns Hopkins built a gap with a 5-1 run. They soon ended the match by taking the final seven points. 

McDaniel Preview

The Green Terror dropped two Centennial Conference matches on the road last week, falling to #3 Johns Hopkins (18-25, 10-25, 12-25) and Haverford (14-25, 7-25, 19-25) in three sets. In the match against Johns Hopkins, Angalyn Strouse totaled five kills, while Katherine Taveras and Natalia Johnson each had six digs. In the loss to Haverford, Allyson Burgee hit .364 with six kills, while Kailey Young led the team with seven kills. Samantha Fadel had 14 digs. Taveras had 11 assists, and Cassy Poteet totaled nine assists. Kaylee Comstock leads the Centennial Conference, averaging 0.82 aces/set (sixth across DIII WVB), while she is fifth in assists/set (5.54). Taveras ranks fifth in digs/set (3.82), while Abigayle Bowley is tenths in blocks/set (0.74). 

Johns Hopkins Preview

A 3-0 week moved the #3 Blue Jays to a 15-match winning streak following Centennial Conference wins over McDaniel (25-18, 25-10, 25-12) on Wednesday and Swarthmore (21-25, 25-23, 25-20, 25-20) on Saturday, while they concluded non-conference action against Stevenson (25-9, 25-18, 25-21) in three sets on Thursday. In the win over McDaniel, Simone Adam totaled ten kills, while Helena Swaak (15) and Kate Danaher (14) totaled a double-digit assist tally. Chidinma Onukwugha totaled four blocks, while Roxy Karrer leveled her season-high with four aces. The win against Swarthmore secured a home match in the semifinal round of the Centennial Conference tournament. Jilienne Widener and Simrin Carlsen each had 16 kills, while Danaher had 25 assists. Swaak totaled 21 assists. Carlsen also contributed 16 digs. Against Stevenson, Carlsen hit .591 with 14 kills, as the team hit .506. Adam leads Centennial attackers by averaging 3.51 kills/set, while she is second in hitting percentage (.366, 23rd in DIII WVB). Brooklyn Pater leads the conference with 1.25 blocks/set (12th in DIII WVB), Danaher is third in assists/set (6.15), and Evelyn Batista is fourth in aces/set (0.66).

F&M Individuals in Centennial Conference Top 10

Hitting Percentage
4. Avery Grantham (.342)
7. Gianna Mangiamele (.311)

Kills/Set
T5. Gianna Mangiamele (3.00)

Assists/Set
3. Liah Perez (6.34)
8. Carly Campbell (5.13)

Service Aces/Set
6. Liah Perez (0.54)
10. Melissa Benkowitz (0.51)

Blocks/Set
7. Avery Grantham (0.88)

Points/Set
6. Coco Shultz (3.39)
8. Gianna Mangiamele (3.33)