Saint Vincent 3, Franciscan 1
Franciscan Starters
Renee Antonelli, Gracie Francis, Grace Wallace, Rani Hebert, Elizabeth Luebbers, Gabrielle Disselkamp & libero - Sara Moore
Saint Vincent Starters
Augustine, Staples, Polk, Fox, Poach, Kocjancic
How It Happened
Franciscan Women's Volleyball made the trip to Latrobe to take on Saint Vincent in their final test before PAC play begins on Saturday. The Barons would battle, but lose in four close sets to the host Bearcats.
In set one, these two teams nearly traded every point back and forth with neither team every holding a lard lead. Elizabeth Luebbers had a few kills in the early going to give Franciscan their largest lead of the set at 6-3. The Bearcats would battle back and tie this one up numerous times. With the score tied at 18-18, they would go on a 4-1 run to take their largest lead thus far at 22-19. Renee Antonelli kept Franciscan in it with a pair of kills, and Rani Hebert added one to set the score at 23-24. The Bearcats would get the final point to take the first set by a score of 25-23.
Franciscan would jump out to a 4-1 lead to start set two, thanks to a pair of aces from Grace Wallace. The Bearcats would battle back and even take the lead a couple of times before it would be all tied up at 15-15. The Barons would regain the lead with a 3-0 lead that included a pair of kills form Gabrielle Disselkamp. The Bearcats would have it tied back up at 23-23, but Rani Hebert would step up with a pair of kills to give Franciscan the second set, 25-23.
Much like set two, Franciscan started off the third set with a 5-1 lead with a pair of aces from Gabrielle Disslekamp. The Barons continued to stretch the lead up to six points at 8-2, the largest lead by either team thus far. The Barons would keep the foot on the gas, as Antonelli added three kills to maintain the six point edge at 11-5. The Bearcats would not give up though, as they slowly fought back to tie it up at 19-19. The Bearcats finished strong with a 6-1 run that included three kills to take the third set.
A back and forth start to set four would lead to a 4-4 tie in the early going. Franciscan would then go on a 4-0 run with two kills from Antonelli to take an 8-4 lead. Antonelli would have six kills in Franciscan's first ten points in the fourth set, as the veteran was trying her hardest to extend the match. The Bearcats battled back to tie it up multiple times, as the score would be 17-17. A 4-1 Bearcats run would give them a lead that they would not relinquish, as they won the decisive fourth set 25-22.
Inside the Numbers
- Antonelli led all players with 19 kills.
- Grace Wallace had a career-high 45 set assists. It is a new program record for most assists in a four set match.
- Sara Moore had a season-high 33 digs.
- Wallace also added a team-high four aces.
Who's Next?
Franciscan will travel to Thiel on Saturday for the first conference game of the season. The Barons are in search of their first win all-time against the Tomcats, as they have been on the wrong side of the previous four matchups. Last season they lost in a pair of four set matches, but they were in each game. Thiel finished fifth in the conference last season, and they hold a similar record to Franciscan thus far, so it should be a good test early test to see where the Barons are at this season.
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