ROSEMONT, Pa. – The Messiah women's volleyball team continued its undefeated start to the season by taking down the Rosemont Ravens 3-0 (25-22, 25-11, 25-13) on Thursday night to improve to 9-0 in the 2022 campaign. The Falcons and Ravens played a tight opening set before Messiah pulled away with two overpowering victories in the second and third sets, marking Messiah's fifth sweep of the season.

Caitlin Lielbriedis led the Messiah attack with 13 kills and a .500 hitting percentage. Mackenzie Feight pitched in 11 kills and 7 digs, with the one-two punch of Lielbriedis and Feight recording 24 of the Falcons' 37 total kills. Emma Swartz handed out 22 assists in the three-set match and tied Maddy Eby for the team lead with eight digs on the night. Rachel Garratt landed four service aces over the course of the match as well.

Messiah will take the floor next on Saturday, Sept. 17 against Franklin & Marshall and Houghton at home with the contests set to begin at 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., respectively.

Falcons Take Care of Business Early On
The Falcons opened up the first set trailing for the first few points but tied it up at seven apiece with back-to-back service aces from Rachel Garratt. Messiah did not give up the lead the rest of the set, despite holding a lead of less than six points the rest of the way. Rosemont threatened at the end of the set with three consecutive point, cutting the Falcons lead to just three, but a Mackenzie Feight kill put the end to the Ravens' comeback and gave Messiah the set at 25-22.

Messiah flat-out dominated the second set, winning 25-11 to put the Ravens in a 2-0 hole. The Falcons hit .400 in the set and controlled the set from the start. Caitlin Lielbriedis put the finishing touch on the fantastic set, recording a service ace for the clinching point and giving Messiah a 2-0 lead heading to the third.

What looked like a promising start from both squads in the third set changed quickly, as the Falcons opened up a commanding 12-3 lead. Messiah amassed seven consecutive points before the Ravens finally halted the impressive run. Messiah extended its lead to 23-9 and a 5-2 Rosemont run proved to be too little too late as the Falcons' early lead took them to a 25-13 win in the set and a straight-set sweep on the night.

What's Up Next
As mentioned, Messiah returns home to Jordan Court in Hitchcock Arena on Saturday, Sept. 17 with a tri-match against Franklin & Marshall and Houghton with matches at 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., respectively.