Game Notes

Last Time Out

Franklin & Marshall stayed undefeated in Centennial Conference play with a 3-0 sweep at Washington College on Saturday. The victory was F&M's 10th by sweep this season as the Diplomats continue to receive votes in the latest national polls. Avery Grantham's final game-winning kill gave her 10 on the day as she hit .643 during her 14 attempts. Coco Shultz finished with a team-high 11 kills as she swung at a .333 clip, while Anderson hit .308 for the match with six kills in 13 swings. Anderson added a team-best six blocks (one solo) to her day at the net. Carly Campbell once again handled the setting duties as she recorded a double-double with 32 assists to go along with a team-best 12 digs. That victory came after the Diplomats suffered just their third loss of the season against Lancaster Bible during mid-week non-conference action.

Dickinson Preview

Dickinson enters the week with a 9-6 record that features a 1-2 mark against Centennial Conference opponents. The Red Devils have three non-conference opponents in common with the Diplomats in Eastern, York (Pa.), and Messiah. Both sides lost to Eastern as the Diplomats dropped that match in five while Dickinson fell in three. F&M defeated Messiah who was able to take down the Red Devils by a 3-0 score. Both teams defeated York (Pa.), with F&M doing so in straight sets while Dickinson was about to complete that victory in a five-set thriller. In the early part of the conference schedule, Dickinson has defeated Bryn Mawr, while falling to both Haverford and Swarthmore. Mallie Thomas and Amelia Kim are both averaging at least three points per set for the Red Devils on the season. Thomas and Kim are tied for the team lead with an identical total of 141 kills. Avery Butcher is the team's standout defensively with 216 digs on the season.

Bryn Mawr Preview

Bryn Mawr enters the week at 4-10 overall. The Owls have played only Dickinson to date in Centennial Conference action and dropped a 3-0 match to the Red Devils. Bryn Mawr will host Swarthmore on Wednesday night before the Owls make the trip to Lancaster on Saturday. The Diplomats and Owls have no common opponents on the season entering the week and will have just the shared result versus Dickinson when they play on Saturday. Elise Perry (141.5 points), Zara Kepler (123.5 points), and Adelaide Grace (119.5) have all eclipsed triple digit points for the season, with Grace's 2.27 kills per set leading her team. Charlotte Mullen (159 digs) and Kepler (152 digs) have been the team's strongest performers on defense. 

Last time vs. Dickinson

Franklin & Marshall won its fifth consecutive match of the 2023 season when the Diplomats swept the Red Devils during the 2023 season. The set scores in the match were 25-17, 25-20, and 25-18. F&M quickly got out a 5-1 lead in the first set and later grew the lead to 11-3 following a 6-0 run. Following a Red Devil rally to make it 13-11, the Diplomats won seven of the next eight points for a 20-12 advantage. Coco Shultz then closed out the frame with a kill to give F&M a 1-0 edge in sets. After Dickinson won the first point of the second stanza, the Diplomats would not trail for the rest of the night. With F&M in front, 6-5, the Diplomats distanced themselves from the Red Devils with five consecutive points. The lead was later trimmed to 17-14 by Dickinson, but F&M used a 6-2 to get to take a 23-16 advantage. Shultz once again ended the set with a kill as the Diplomats went up 2-0. In the final set, F&M got out to a 9-4 edge to begin the frame. Dickinson then won conesutive points before the Diplomats responded by winning the next six points for a 15-7 lead. F&M would go up by as much as 10 in the stanza before Rei Baker clinched the match with a kill. 

Last time vs. Bryn Mawr

Playing these opponents in the same order last season, F&M made it 6-0 straight wins with a sweep of Bryn Mawr a year ago.  After F&M led 4-1 to begin the first set, Bryn Mawr jumped back in front with four consecutive points. With the score later tied 8-8, the Diplomats went on a 4-1 run and never trailed for the rest of the set. Up 15-13, F&M took its largest lead of the frame with three straight points. The Owls did manage to even the score at 22-22. but the Diplomats went on to win the set after winning the final three rallies. F&M never trailed at any point in the second stanza, opening up the frame with an 8-1 advantage. Bryn Mawr then got to within four with the Diplomats leading 16-12, but F&M quickly recovered by winning three straight points. Leading 20-15, the Diplomats closed out the set with a 5-0 run. 

Following a back-and-forth start to the third set, F&M opened up a 12-6 lead with five straight points. The Diplomats then took their largest lead of the frame at 18-8 before the Owls stormed back with a 6-0 run. It would be the last time Bryn Mawr scored for the rest of the match as F&M finished the set by winning the final seven points.  Sydney Levins and Coco Shultz each registered seven kills to lead the team while Emily Dean notched 15 assists. Defensively, Bella Ganfield and Shultz both collected four digs. 

Centennial Conference Leaders from Franklin & Marshall (Top 10)

Hitting Percentage
4. Avery Grantham (.358)
9. Mya Anderson (.296)

Assists/set
5. Liah Perez (5.50)
7. Carly Campbell (5.46)

Service Aces/set
6. Melissa Benkowitz (0.62)

Blocks /set
9. Avery Grantham (0.76)

Points/set
8. Coco Shultz (3.15)