Game Notes

Last Time Out

Franklin & Marshall prevailed in a hard-fought five-set match at Muhlenberg to open Centennial Conference play last Saturday afternoon. Starting the conference slate with a rematch of last year's postseason victory in favor of the Diplomats, Franklin & Marshall (12-2, 1-0 CC) dug deep at several crucial points to earn the win against the Mules (5-7, 0-1 CC). The Diplomats had three different players finish with double figure kill totals, led by Coco Shultz's 15 in addition to her team-leading 17 digs for a double-double. Ceci Connolly matched her with a team-best 16.5 points as she hit .281 for the match with 13 kills, while Maya Anderson added 10 more. Gianna Mangiamele and Avery Grantham were just behind their team leaders with nine and eight kills, respectively. Grantham also led the Diplomats with seven assisted blocks as Connolly added six more to the team's 11 rejections on the afternoon. Carly Campbell handled the majority of the setting duties and finished her day with a season-best 36 assists.

The decisive fifth game featured six ties – with the last coming at nine-all – before a kill from Grantham and huge service ace from Maile Lani Sugamura gave F&M a lead it would not relinquish for the remainder of the match. In another set where the final points were critical, the Diplomats claimed six of the final eight for the 15-11 victory in the ultimate tiebreak. Shultz put the finishing touches on the victory with a kill to earn herself a chance to serve for the match before delivering an ace on the clinching point. That service ace was the final of 10 such efforts on the day for F&M, with Melissa Benkowitz's four service aces highlighting those efforts.

William Paterson Preview Preview

William Paterson is 9-5 on the season and off to a 2-0 start in New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) play. The Pioneers have won five straight matches entering Thursday night - and nine of their last 11 overall. The two sides share two common opponents in Montclair State and Juniata. The Diplomats defeated MSU by a 3-0 sweep. William Paterson prevailed over the Red Hawks by a 3-1 score during their NJAC opener. Both teams fell in three sets to the No. 1 Eagles. Three of the Pioneers' five losses have come against nationally-ranked competition, including a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Johns Hopkins who will play the Diplomats later in Centennial Conference play.  Both Cecilia Miller and Hope Arce-Reed are averaging more than three points per set for the Pioneers this season. Miller is leading the team with 3.18 kills per set as she and Arce-Reed have 162 and 158 kills, respectively. As a team, William Paterson is hitting just .136 on the season. 

Washington College Preview

The Shorewomen are 10-4 on the year and have yet to play a Centennial Conference match as Saturday's matchup will serve as the team's first CC action of the 2024 season. Washington College and Franklin & Marshall have one common opponent on the year in Lancaster Bible. The Diplomats defeated the Chargers by a 3-0 score, while the Shorewomen fell in that matchup during their first weekend of action by that same 3-0 score. Washington College has won seven straight matches and 21 consecutive sets entering the matchup with the Diplomats. Giselle Kleinbussink has led the Shorewomen offensively as she is hitting .235 with 136 kills on the season. 

Last time vs. Washington College

During the 2023 season, the Diplomats won their 34th straight meeting against the Shoremen. In the opening moments of the first set, F&M jumped out to an 8-1 lead, led by three Sydney Levins aces. Shortly after, the Diplomats increased their advantage to 13-3. The two team then traded points over the next seven rallies before F&M used a 5-0 run to go up 21-7. An attacking error from Collette Franck allowed the Diplomats to close out the frame and get ahead, 1-0. The Shorewomen gained momentum in the second set, as they started with an 8-6 edge. Following four consecutive points from F&M, Washington won the next two rallies to even the score at 10-10. However, the Diplomats gained separation with an 8-0 run, which included three Gianna Mangiamele kills, and would not trail for the rest of the stanza. Though the Shorewomen closed the gap to 23-19, Levins finished the set with a kill. Much like the first frame, the Diplomats finished the match in dominant style, beginning the third set with a 12-4 lead. The Shorewomen later cut the deficit to 15-10, but three straight points by F&M kept Washington at arm's length. The Diplomats went on close out the set, 25-15 and win the match. 

Centennial Conference Leaders from Franklin & Marshall (Top 10)

Hitting Percentage
6. Avery Grantham (.329)
7. Mya Anderson (.313)

Assists/set
4. Liah Perez (5.58)

Service Aces/set
7. Melissa Benkowitz (0.63)

Blocks /set
7. Avery Grantham (0.82)

Points/set
10. Coco Shultz (3.13)