Franciscan 3, Carlow 1

Franciscan Starters 
Elizabeth Luebbers, Grace Wallace, Mary Jean Cadman, Sarah Clyde, Tessa Miller, Ava King & libero - Sara Moore 

How It Happened 
Franciscan made the short trip into Pittsburgh to take on Carlow on Tuesday evening for the Barons sixth straight game away from Steubenville to start the season. That has not held the Barons back from a very successful start to the season, as they earned their fourth straight win tonight in four sets.

Franciscan would start out in control of the opening set, as they would build a 13-7 lead. They built the lead up to eight at 22-14, but then the Celtics would claw their way back into the set. A pair of service errors from the Celtics would give the Barons their final two points to take the first set. 

The Barons had lost some of their momentum in set two, as the Celtics would take the early 7-3 lead. Franciscan would fight back to tie it up at 9-9, and they would take the lead at 14-12 after kills from Elizabeth Luebbers and Clare Karr. Luebbers added a couple more kills, as the Barons would hold a 20-17 lead. Carlow would answer with an 8-2 run to claim the second set and tie up the match.

Carlow would take the opening point of set three, but then Franciscan would go on a 6-0 run with a pair of kills from Mary Jean Cadman. Later in the set, a 4-0 run with a pair of service aces from Mary Smart would extend the lead to 11-4. The Barons continued to add on, as the lead would get up to 10 at 20-10. The Celtics would put up a fight and get to within striking distance, but a 3-0 run closed out the set with a final kill from Gabrielle Disselkamp. 

All the momentum was in the hands of the Barons, and it showed. They started the fourth set on an 8-0 run, which included a pair of kills from Sarah Clyde. It seemed as if the match was over, but the Celtics had other plans. They would pull within one point at 14-13, but thankfully, that would be as close as they would get to the lead. The Barons would end the set on a 7-1 run with a pair of kills from Disselkamp to secure the victory.

Inside the Numbers 
- Gabrielle Disselkamp led the Barons with 13 kills.
- Franciscan had nine aces, three from Mary Smart.
- Luebbers had a season-high five block assists.
- Sara Moore had 19 digs.

Up Next
Franciscan will host Penn State Beaver on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. for their 2024 home opener. The Barons are 9-2 all-time against the Lions with wins in their last eight meetings. In 2022, Penn State Beaver won the opening set, but then the Barons would answer with three straight dominate set wins. Renee Antonelli led the way with 20 kills, and Grace Wallace had an impressive 43 set assists in that victory. 

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