LANCASTER, Pa.- The Franklin & Marshall volleyball team (21-5, 9-1 Centennial Conference) seek the team's seventh Centennial Conference Tournament Championship and back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. They enter this week's Centennial Conference Tournament as the second seed with first-round bye. They'll open the tournament against third-seeded Haverford (19-8, 7-3 Centennial Conference) in the semifinals on Friday, November 14, at 7:00 p.m.

Ticket Information

The Centennial Conference has announced that Hudl will serve as the ticket provider for CC championship events. Hudl will give event attendees the ability to purchase tickets online for each round of the Centennial postseason beginning with field hockey, men's soccer, women's soccer and volleyball this fall. Centennial fans will be able to find all scheduled postseason events on the Centennial ticketing homepage and quickly purchase tickets to receive via email. Fans will then use their smartphone to gain access at championship events through a simple and secure ticket validation process.  Below are the ticket prices for each round of the postseason:
Adults - $10
Students (Age 6 through High School) - $5
Senior Citizens - $5
College Students, Faculty & Staff of Centennial Schools - FREE
Children 5 and Under – FREE

The Field

FIRST ROUND: Wednesday, Nov. 12 | at #3 & #4 seeds
#3 Haverford def. #6 Dickinson, 3-2
#5 Gettysburg def. #4 Swarthmore, 3-0

SEMIFINALS: Friday, Nov. 14 | at #1 & #2 seeds
#3 Haverford at #2 Franklin & Marshall, 7:00 p.m
#5 Gettysburg at #1 Johns Hopkins, 7:00 p.m.

CHAMPIONSHIP: Sunday, Nov. 16 | at highest remaining seed 
Semifinals winners, time 1:00 p.m.

Entering the Centennial Tournament

The Diplomats enter the Centennial Conference Tournament following a 21-5, 9-1 Centennial Conference campaign that earned the team the second seed and a first-round bye in the Centennial Conference Tournament for the first time since 2019. The Diplomats have earned 15 sweeps from their 21 victories, and the team's five losses have all come against ranked opponents. 

The team ranks highly across Division III in a few stat categories, ranking 15th in assists per set (12.44), both 16th in aces per set (2.95) and kills per set (13.34), and 32nd in hitting percentage (.232). 

Mary Kate Salko '01 enters her 20th Centennial Conference Tournament seeking a third Centennial Conference Championship and fifth NCAA Tournament appearance. The 2024 Diplomats entered the Centennial Conference Tournament as the third seed, earning a sweep over sixth-seeded Ursinus in the first round before falling in five sets at second-seeded Swarthmore in the semifinal round.The Diplomats earned an at-large NCAA Tournament bid, dropping their opening match to (RV) Illinois Wesleyan in three sets. Coco Shultz starred in 2024's postseason, totaling 42 kills with a .305 hitting percentage and 23 digs in 11 sets played.

Players to Watch

The 14th-best serving team in Division III is led by Liah Perez's 0.68 aces per set which leads the Centennial Conference and ranks 36th across Division III. The senior setter also ranks second in the conference in assists per set (5.70). Sophomore setter Carly Campbell has primarily shared setting responsibilities for the Diplomats, and she ranks fourth in the conference in assists per set (5.61). Junior defensive specialist Emily Dean has averaged the sixth-most aces per set (0.56 in the Centennial Conference). 

Coco Shultz has had an impressive senior season to date, becoming F&M's 11th player with 1,000 career points and digs. Along the way, she averaged the second-most aces per set (0.64) in the conference behind Perez, and the eight-most points per set (3.46). Shultz also leads the Diplomats in the back row by averaging 2.98 digs per set.

Melissa Benkowitz and Ceci Connolly have also been key in attack for the Diplomats. Among qualifying attackers, Connolly ranks fourth in the Centennial in hitting percentage (.312), sixth in kills per set (3.25), and seventh in points per set (3.58). Benkowitz is seventh in kills per set (3.13) and sixth in points per set (3.59), while she ranks second on the Diplomats in digs per set (2.93). 

First-year libero Abby Silinski ranks third on the Diplomats in digs per set (2.80). F&M's front-row defense has been led by Paula Elguera and Connolly who are averaging 0.66 and 0.61 blocks per set, respectively. Mya Anderson had F&M's second-best hitting percentage (.296). 

Scouting the Fords

Third-seeded Haverford enters Friday's match with a 19-8, 7-3 Centennial Conference record. They maintain a six-match winning streak that has featured a four-set win over No. 7 Johns Hopkins, marking only the second Centennial Conference defeat for the Blue Jays in the past six seasons.

The Fords rank highly in defensive statistical categories, leading the Centennial Conference in digs per set (17.12) while ranking second in blocks per set (2.15, 21st across Division III) and fifth in opponent hitting percentage (.141). Offensively, they are third in assists per set (11.30), third in points per set (16.51) and fourth in kills per set (12.11). 

Fiona Moord is second in the Centennial Conference in blocks per set (1.07), followed by Maggie Turner in fifth (0.98). Three Fords rank in the top ten in digs per set including Sierra Lever (3.36, 6th), Eliana Brown (3.19, 8th), and Kira Chaney (3.11, 9th). Elizabeth Cella has been key to the Fords' attack, ranking third in points per set (3.95) and fifth in kills per set (3.45) among Centennial Conference players. Gia Frank has the conference's tenth-best hitting percentage (.266) among qualifying attackers. 

Series History vs. Haverford

The Diplomats hold a 31-13 series advantage over the Fords, including an 8-2 record in the last ten matches. During Mary Kate Salko's time leading the Diplomats, F&M is 18-9 with a 2-1 record in Centennial Conference tournament action, although it's the first meeting since F&M won in the semifinals of 2014's Centennial Conference Tournament Championship campaign. 

F&M won in four sets at the Mayser Center in October. Ceci Connolly and Avery Grantham  led the F&M attack, as Connolly hit .457 with 18 kills and Grantham totaled 12 kills with a .523 hitting percentage. Abby Silinski posted a team-best 15 digs, while Liah Perez recorded 22 assists, two aces, and ten digs. Mya Anderson led the team with one solo block and three block assists.