NEW CONCORD, Ohio - Franciscan volleyball showed some life late in the third set but it was not enough to overcome Muskingum University in a straight set loss 25-15, 25-12 and 25-20.

"They were just putting all the pressure on us," head coach Kelly Herrmann said. "It's tough when a team is not making any mistakes, when all of their passes are on the court, and they are keeping you off balance. You have to respond with that type of play, have to play at that level, and we didn't."

Muskingum jumped out to quick starts in each of the first two sets, leading by scores of 7-2 and 10-2. The Lady Barons started to get frustrated with themselves as was evident by the 12 hitting errors made in those two sets.

In between the second and third sets, Herrmann challenged the girls to relax and play with more excitement and confidence. The team responded with 11 kills as opposed to one error in the final set, making for a more reasonable set score.

"The third game was a better game," Herrmann said. "I was proud of the team the way they really tried to relax and play better volleyball in the third game. We started attacking more, playing more aggressively and limiting our errors."

Defense was strong for the Lady Barons from the beginning, however, with strong performances from many of the players. Senior libero Samantha Kelly led the defense all night long with her positive attitude, trying her best to keep her teammates from getting too frustrated. Kelly finished with 12 digs in the match.

"Sam dug so many balls and just played tremendous defense," Herrmann said. "Sam really was maybe the one person on the team who didn't seem too frustrated with themselves. She always communicates, she's always smiling, which is really important in matches like this."

Freshman setter Becca Haven also stepped up defensively with a team-high 22 digs, an unusual role for the setter who is supposed to take the second ball and not the first off an attack.

"They really hit at the right side of our court a lot, going cross-court," Herrmann said. "They hit a lot of balls at Becca and she did a good job."

Haven also added nine assists and four kills on the night.

The Lady Barons will host Geneva College and Houghton in a Dig Pink Day tri-match on September 19 with Franciscan playing at 11 am and 3 pm.

"I just keep telling the girls to keep looking to the next match," Herrmann said. "We are excited about Saturday, excited about our Dig Pink matches. It's going to be a great day."