Game Notes

Last Time Out

The Diplomats are 9-1 on the year and riding an eight-match winning streak after a perfect 3-0 weekend at their home invitational. The Diplomats, who are currently receiving votes in the national polls, defeated their second receiving votes opponent in as many weeks when they took down Virginia Wesleyan in a thrilling five-set match. In order to clinch the victory, F&M needed to complete a reverse sweep as they came from a 2-0 deficit. The next two matches were both traditional sweeps in favor of the Diplomats as they defeated Clarkson and Montclair State. Seven of F&M's nine victories this season have come via 3-0 sweeps. The only other set that the Diplomats dropped during a victory came against Babson who like Virginia Wesleyan was receiving votes in the national polls when they faced off against the Diplomats.

Juniata Preview

The Eagles come into Saturday's tri-match riding a 70-match winning streak which includes capturing the NCAA Division III Championship during each of the past two seasons. Juniata has not been beaten on its home court since the 2019 season. Included in the team's 8-0 start to the 2024 season are a pair of victories against Centennial Conference foes Johns Hopkins and Swarthmore. Johns Hopkins was one of just three teams that has been able to take a set against the Eagles, with Hope and Wisconsin-Oshkosh also dropping 3-1 matches in the Eagles' toughest tests to date.

F&M last met Juniata during the 2022 season when the Eagles were ranked fourth in the nation before going on to win the national championship. During that match with the national power, the Eagles rolled up 42 kills and hit .283 to lead them to victory with set scores of 25-11, 25-18, and 25-19. Six different Diplomats recorded multiple kills in the match, with Lauren Arnold and Sydney Levins each tallying a team-best five kills. Jada West continued her strong play at the net with five block assists and Mangum had another double-digit dig performance with 15 digs. The Diplomats closed the gap on Juniata throughout the afternoon and played the tightest set of the contest during the final game. F&M was trailing just 17-15 midway through that final set, but the Eagles ran off three straight points late to secure a 25-19 final in their advantage.

Muskingum Preview

Muskingum is 6-4 on the year after the Muskies most recent victory against Earlham snapped a three-match losing streak. The Diplomats and Muskies have no common opponents during the early portion of the season and will be meeting for the first time since the 2014 season. That 2014 matchup occured in Lancaster and also gave F&M its first-ever victory in four attempts against Muskingum. The Diplomats' first-ever win against Muskingum saw them take the first two sets by a 25-16 and 25-12 scores before the Muskies took a 25-23 game. Nevertheless, F&M quickly rebounded to win in four by a 25-17 score.

Rachel Umberger led the offense with 13 kills on that day, while Julie Harvey notched 10 and Kelsey Michenko tallied nine. Caroline Hubbard added 43 assists and 14 digs for a double-double, while Alyssa Sanchez supplied 14 digs as well. 

Centennial Conference Leaders from Franklin & Marshall (Top 10)

Hitting Percentage
8. Mya Anderson (.328)
9. Gianna Mangiamele (.295)

Kills/set
7. Coco Shultz (2.80)

Assists/set
4. Liah Perez (5.40)

Service Aces/set
5. Melissa Benkowitz (0.70)

Blocks /set
7. Avery Grantham (0.80)

Points/set
5. Coco Shultz (3.37)