MANCHESTER, N.H. – The Saint Anselm College women's volleyball team bounced back with a four-set win over Franklin Pierce University on Tuesday evening at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium, improving to 10-4 on the season.
Saint Anselm 3, Franklin Pierce 1 (25-23, 20-25, 25-15, 25-12)
Highlights
- Saint Anselm improves to 23-21 all-time against the Ravens, winning back-to-back matchups over Franklin Pierce.
- Senior Sam Pila powered the Saint Anselm offense with a career-high 21 kills on 53 attacks, hitting .283. Pila also had seven digs and a block assist.
- Junior Taylor Lacerda added 10 kills and four digs while hitting .250.
- Freshman Riley Campo contributed seven kills, a career-high four service aces, two digs, and 11.0 points.
- Sophomore Mckenna O'Connell guided the Hawks with 36 assists, adding three kills plus six digs and two block assists.
- Senior Madeline Burke led all Hawks with 19 digs and seven assists, tying her season high.
- Sophomore Peyton Elward recorded a career-high 10 digs, four kills, three service aces, one solo block, and one block assist.
- The Hawks recorded 15 kills in both the first and third sets, hitting .182 and .382, respectively. Saint Anselm closed out the match with another efficient set, hitting .379 in the fourth with 13 kills.
How it Happened
SET 1 | Saint Anselm and Franklin Pierce traded points throughout a tightly contested opening frame, with 10 tie scores and four lead changes. The Hawks held an 18-14 advantage before the Ravens rallied to tie the set at 23-23. Saint Anselm responded with the final two points, as a Pila kill followed by a Lacerda kill gave the Hawks a 25-23 victory and a 1-0 lead.
SET 2 | Franklin Pierce jumped ahead early in the second set, taking an 8-6 lead before extending its advantage to 14-10. The Ravens later built a 21-16 lead, and although Saint Anselm trimmed the deficit to 21-19, Franklin Pierce scored four of the final five points to even the match with a 25-20 win.
SET 3 | The Hawks took control early in the third, opening a 6-4 lead before Franklin Pierce pulled within 7-5. Saint Anselm then scored three straight points to move ahead 10-5 and continued to build its advantage, taking a 17-12 lead before closing the set on an 8-1 run. Pila and Lacerda combined for 10 kills in the frame as the Hawks claimed a 25-15 victory.
SET 4 | Franklin Pierce opened the fourth set with a 3-0 advantage, but Saint Anselm quickly answered with six consecutive points to take a 6-4 lead. The Hawks continued to pull away, scoring nine straight points to turn a 10-7 advantage into a commanding 19-7 lead. Elward served up two aces during the run, while Pila added multiple kills as Saint Anselm closed out the match with a 25-12 victory.
Up Next
The Saint Anselm women's volleyball team (10-4, 0-0 NE10) opens Northeast 10 Conference play on Friday, Oct. 2, at 5 p.m. against Southern Connecticut State University (11-3, 0-0 NE10) in New Haven, Conn., at Pelz Gymnasium.
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