LANCASTER, Pa.- The Franklin & Marshall volleyball team (16-6, 9-0 Centennial Conference) pushed the team's winning streak to ten-consecutive matches with Wednesday's straight-set sweep (25-13, 25-17, 25-13) over Bryn Mawr (6-14, 1-8 Centennial Conference).
The win extends the team's active winning streak to ten matches. Tied for the sixth-longest streak in program history, it's the program's longest winning run since the 1999 season. The team is also on a five-match streak of straight-set victories.
Melissa Benkowitz led the team in kills (9) and digs (10), hitting .333.
Ceci Connolly followed with eight kills plus five digs, while
Mia Mascherino recorded five kills, eight digs, and an ace.
Jillian Surkis hit .500 with four kills.
Carly Campbell led the side with 13 assists while totaling five digs and two aces.
Abby Silinski and
Claire Kelly each recorded three service aces.
Connolly delivered two kills early to give F&M an early 5-2 advantage in the first game. Bryn Mawr earned a point on a service error followed by a 4-0 run with two kills from Benkowitz and two attack errors to give the hosts a 9-4 advantage. F&M pushed their lead to eight on a 6-1 run where Mascherino led the way with two kills. Bryn Mawr closed the gap to 16-11, utilizing three attack errors for a 4-1 run in their favor. F&M responded with four-consecutive points with three aces from Kelly at the service line. Leading 20-11 at this point, F&M continued to pull away, winning on a setting error at 25-13.
An eight-point Diplomat run kicked off the second set, led by three kills from Benkowitz. The Owls chipped into the lead, going on a 5-1 run that closed the gap to four points. The sides traded points until a 5-0 run with two Silinski aces to give F&M a double-digit lead at 18-7. F&M maintained this lead up to set point at 24-13. The Owls forced five set points on two kills and two aces before Surkis closed the set on a kill.
The Diplomats again gained an early lead, scoring the first three points in the third set. Bryn Mawr slowly cut into the lead, drawing level at 7-7 on an ace. The teams traded two-point runs followed by a 3-0 run that gave F&M the advantage again. One Owls kill was followed by seven unanswered points on a run where F&M benefited from four different errors to lead, 18-10. Four-straight errors from the Owls then extended the advantage to 22-11 before F&M closed the match on kills from
Gretchen Eichelzer and
Oriah Rosenfeld followed by a match-point attack error.
Franklin & Marshall concludes the regular season by hosting (RV) Swarthmore on November 7, at 1 p.m. in a match that will decide the top seed for this year's Centennial Conference Volleyball Tournament.
