Franciscan 1, Geneva 3

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

How It Happened 
Franciscan, fresh off a five-set win at Bethany last night, made the short trip north to Geneva on Friday evening. The Barons were rolled into today's action on an eight game winning streak, but the Golden Tornadoes would be a formidable test. Franciscan was in search of their first win over Geneva in program history and extend their historic win streak, but the Golden Tornadoes had different plans tonight.

The home team would take an early 7-3 edge in set one, but the Barons would answer. A 6-0 run would ensue, which included a pair of kills from Elizabeth Luebbers. The Barons would build on that lead and hold a five point advantage at 18-13 after a kill from Ava King. The Golden Tornadoes would not disappear, as they would tie it up at 21-21 and regain the lead. They would have a 23-21 lead, and Ava King would snap their run with a massive kill. The Barons would tie it up at 24-24, and then Sara Moore would serve two points in a row, including an ace. 

Franciscan appeared to be in control once again in the second set, as they held a 10-8 lead, but Geneva would heat up with a 7-1 lead to take charge. They would hold that lead until the score would be 24-20 with Geneva one point away from tying this match. The Franciscan freshmen had different plans, as Ava King added a pair of kills, and Kaitlan Hickey added one. That led to a Geneva timeout at 24-23. Out of the timeout, Grace Wallace would tie it up with a kill, and then Kaitlain Hickey came through with another kill to give the Barons the serve for the set. The Golden Tornadoes would answer with two consecutive points and string together another to take the second set at 29-27.

In the third set, Cadman would open it up with a kill, but unfortunately, they would not hold a lead for very long in this set. Geneva would hold a five-point lead, but then the Barons would go on a 5-0 run on Kaitlain Hickey's serve to tie it up at 18-18. Geneva would not let Franciscan regain the lead, as they would go on a 5-1 run to regain control, and hey would close out the srt 25-22.

The fourth set would be back and forth to start, but a Geneva 9-0 run would make them the first to 15 at 15-5. The mistakes would pile up for the Barons, as Geneva would cruise to a 25-11 win in the only set that was not close of the evening. With the win, the Golden Tornadoes are now on a four-game winning streak of their own.
 
Inside the Numbers 
- King had eight kills to lead the Barons.
- Gabrielle Disselkamp had four aces and 19 digs on the night.
- Franciscan ahd their worst attack percentage (-.017) since their last loss against Westminster (-.023).
- Veon had 24 kills to lead the way for Geneva.

Up Next
Franciscan gets right back into action on Saturday at Chatham at 1:00 p.m. The Barons are 14-7 all-time against the Cougars, as their 22nd meeting all-time will be of the non-conference variety. Last season, the Cougars beat the Barons in three sets in Pittsburgh, but the Barons hope for a better result in the 2024. Chatham enters the game with a 3-7 record and coming off a loss to Hiram.

Stay Connected 
Be sure to follow Franciscan Athletics on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook for the most in-depth coverage.