STEUBENVILLE—The Finnegan Fieldhouse was full of fans for the first time this fall sports season as the Franciscan University of Steubenville Lady Baron volleyball team welcomed Marietta College for its first home match of the season. The Lady Barons did not disappoint their home crowd as they beat Marietta, 3-0 (25-20, 25-23, 25-22).

Franciscan was coming off of a hard-fought, five-game victory at Carlow University on Tuesday.

"I really didn't know what to expect in this match after playing such a tough, five-game match on the road last night," said head coach Kelly Herrmann. She noted that her preseason practice sessions were designed to benefit her squad in situations like this. "[Our preseason] was a challenge physically. We had multiple short sessions close together, and we set it up to have a quick recovery mentality."

That appeared to pay off as the Lady Barons showed no signs of fatigue.

"We shocked [Marietta]," Herrmann said. "We took them out of their game early, and overall I thought it was just a very good match."

Freshman setter Amy O'Keefe continued to establish herself as the offensive leader of the Lady Barons, according to Herrmann. She registered 27 assists on the night, notching ten in the first game, eight in the second, and seven in the third. "I just cannot say enough about her composure and toughness as a freshman," Herrmann noted.

Also leading the way for the offense were Anna Cain and Meg Kay, who had 15 and 11 kills, respectively. "Anna had one hitting error the entire match, which is great," added Herrmann, "and Meg had a great match. She hit well from the back row, she challenged them on quick returns to the corner. [She had] just a really great game, which is what you would expect from your junior captain, three-year starter."

Herrmann also noted the play of senior Nicole Henson, who Herrmann called "the captain of our defense." Herrmann added, "I've challenged her recently and she responded well [tonight.] She's been passing great. She put the ball in Amy [O'Keefe]'s hands and when you do that, offense is easy."

The Lady Barons improve to 4-5 on the season, and they will host their third annual Dig Pink Breast Cancer Awareness event on Saturday. They play La Roche College at 11 a.m. and Ursuline College at 3 p.m.