TACOMA Wash.- The (RV) Franklin & Marshall volleyball team (2-1) split their opening day at the Puget Sound Premier, falling in four sets to Pacific Lutheran (2-0) before taking the nightcap over hosts Puget Sound (0-2) in four sets.
Match One - vs. Pacific Lutheran
F&M was held to a .086 hitting percentage in a three-set defeat (13-25, 17-25, 24-26) to open the Puget Sound Premier against Pacific Lutheran.
Mya Anderson swung north of .400 for the second-consecutive match, totaling seven kills with a .462 hitting percentage.
Melissa Benkowitz and
Ceci Connolly each had a team-best nine kills, while Benkowitz collected 12 digs and Connolly recorded a pair of block assists.
Carly Campbell led the team with 20 assists, and
Claire Kelly recorded two service aces.
Abby Silinski led the Diplomats with 13 digs, while
Mia Mascherino had eight digs.
F&M was kept to a -0.028 hitting percentage in the opening set, registering a match-worst eight attack errors in a 13-25 opening set. F&M led the way early following a three-point run that put them ahead, 4-3. They mostly traded serves up to a 10-9 lead before the Lutes regained control with three-point in a row to lead, 12-10. A Pacific Lutheran service error and Connolly tied things up before the Lutes again took control with three-consecutive points for a 15-12 advantage. An Anderson killed stopped the run, but Pacific Lutheran went on to close out the set one a ten-point rally.
The Lutes hit a match-high .371 in the second set. Following an opening Benkowitz kill, Pacific Lutheran scored four straight for an early 4-1 lead. The sides traded points a few times before each going on a four-point run, leaving F&M trailing 11-8. F&M stayed within a few points up to a 15-13 scoreline before Pacific Lutheran pulled away with a four-point run to lead, 19-13. They eventually closed out the set with five of the last six points, winning 25-17.
The Diplomats began set three with an early 6-2 lead, as Kelly and Connolly each registered a a kill and block assist apiece. The Lutes took control on a 5-0 run via three kills, a solo block, and an attack error, leading 8-7. Anderson stopped the run with a kill, but Pacific Lutheran claimed the next three points. F&M countered with three points of their own, making use of two attack errors from their opponents plus an ace from Campbell to tie the set at 11-11. The Lutes scored back-to-back kills, setting up a run of trading serves that went up to them maintaining a 19-17 lead. Two points from tied the set at 19-apiece, but Pacific Lutheran again took the led with two points of their own. The Diplomats rallied again, posting four-straight points via two Connolly kills and two aces from Kelly to lead, 23-21. After trading serves once to get to an F&M set point, the Lutes scored four-straight points to close out the match, winning 26-24.
Match Two - at Puget Sound
The Diplomats were quick to move on from the first loss of 2026, taking their second match of the day in four sets () over Puget Sound.
Connolly led the attack with 13 kills and a .440 hitting percentage.
Avery Grantham hit .571 with five kills, while Benkowitz had 11 kills with two aces, three block assists, and six digs.
Mia Mascherino hit .273 with eight kills, a team-high four aces, and seven digs. Campbell totaled 26 assists with three aces.
The loggers opened set one with two points, but this was followed by six-straight points including an ace and kill via Mascherino. F&M traded points up to an 11-8 lead before going on a 9-2 run that again starred Mascherino with two kills and an ace. Leading 20-10 at this point, Puget Sound fought back with a five-point run, but F&M soon picked up the pace, winning the set at 25-17 on a kill from Anderson.
The Diplomats swung .407 with just two attack errors in the second set. After a 3-3 start to set two, two-straight Grantham kills began a four-point run for F&M. The Loggers swiftly tied the game nine-apiece with a 5-1 run. The sides traded points in the middle of the set before Puget Sound scored four of five points for a modest 18-15 advantage. The next six points came the Diplomats on a run that included two aces from Campbell and two kills via Mascherino. F&M, leading 21-18 at this point, faced some pressure from a 3-1 run that closed the lead to 22-21. The Diplomats scored the three points needed to win the set on two attack errors and a kill from Connolly.
The Loggers earned an early 5-2 lead to begin set three followed by back-to-back points from F&M. Puget Sound claimed five of the next six points, reaching a 10-5 advantage. They maintained this gap up to 15-10, but the Diplomats went on a set-tying 6-1 run that included two service aces from
Claire Kelly. The Loggers broke the 16-16 deadlock with four points in a row and never looked back, closing out the set on another four-point run to win, 25-19.
F&M erased a 4-1 deficit with three-straight points, although the Loggers swiftly built another advantage with a 6-2 run. The Diplomats earned their first lead of the set at 12-11 on a 6-1 run that included a few errors from their opponents plus a block from Benkowitz and Connolly. The Loggers reclaimed the advantage with a 5-2 run for a narrow 16-14 lead. The Diplomats followed this with a momentum-shifting four-point run to lead, 18-16. The sides traded serves up to 20-18 before F&M closed in on match point by scoring four of the next six points. A Campbell secured the team's second win of the young season.
Up Next
The Diplomats conclude the Puget Sound Premier against defending national champions No. 1 Wisconsin-Oshkosh at noon EDT. ahead of a match against Wisconsin-River Falls at 7:30 p.m. EDT.
