GRANTHAM, Pa. – The Messiah women's volleyball team split a tri-match with Franklin & Marshall and Houghton on Saturday afternoon in Hitchcock Arena. The Flacons started their day by dropping their first match of the season against Franklin & Marshall by a 3-1 (23-25, 25-22, 25-17, 25-11) final. Messiah wrapped up their day with a clean sweep of the Houghton Highlands by a 3-0 (25-10, 25-16, 25-19) final.
Messiah moves to 10-1 on the season with the tri-match split and will be back in action on Wednesday when they take on the York Spartans at 7:00 p.m. on the road.
Franklin & Marshall defeats Messiah – 3-1 (23-25, 25-22, 25-17, 25-11)
The Flacons jumped all over the Diplomats in their first set of the day, taking an early 11-4 lead. From there the Diplomats began fighting their way back into the match, eventually pulling within one point at 15-14. Messiah then won three-straight points with kills from
Mackenzie Feight and Caitlin Lielbreidis sandwiched around a service ace from Feight. That 3-0 run gave Messiah an 18-14 lead, but the Diplomats did not go down quietly. Franklin & Marshall took the lead at 21-20 and later led 23-22, forcing a Messiah timeout. After a breather, Messiah claimed three-straight points to claim the set 25-23.
In the second, it was the Diplomats that took an early advantage, leading 7-4. Messiah battled back, using a 4-1 run to take a 12-11 advantage. The Diplomats responded with eight of the next nine points to hold a 19-13 lead late in the set. Messiah once again rallied back, pulling within one point at 23-22 after a pair of Diplomat errors, but Franklin & Marshall won the final two points with a pair of kills from Sydney Levins to take the set 25-22.
In both the third and fourth sets, the Diplomats asserted themselves early and built leads that the Falcons could not overcome. In the third set, Franklin & Marshall hit .480 as a team with 14 kills and just two errors. The Diplomats took the set 25-17 and built a 2-1 lead.
Franklin & Marshall closed out the match with a 25-11 victory in the fourth set thanks to 10 kills and just one hitting error. Messiah struggled to stay in system in the final two sets and suffered their first defeat of the season after winning their first nine matches.
Mackenzie Feight collected 14 kills in the match, while
Emma Swartz dished out a team-high 27 assists.
Maddy Eby finished the match with 22 digs, leading three Falcons with double-digit digs. Feight also added 16 digs for another double-double and Caitlin Liebriedis finished the match with 14 digs as well.
Messiah defeats Houghton – 3-0 (25-10, 25-16, 25-19)
The Falcons dominated the opening set against Houghton. Messiah took an early 16-3 lead and went on to claim the set 25-10 with a
Mackenzie Feight kill wrapping up a 1-0 lead. As a team, Messiah hit .407 in the set, picking up 13 kills and committing just two errors.
Messiah somehow hit at an even higher percentage in the second set, putting the ball down at a .421 clip en route to a 25-16 victory in the second set. Messiah collected 20 kills in the game. The second set was closer than the first with Houghton leading 12-11 midway through the set. Messiah went on an 8-1 run to take a 19-13 lead before claiming the set by nine points.
The Flacons closed out the match with a 25-19 victory in the third set to clinch a sweep of the Highlanders for their 10th victory of the season. The Falcons trailed 16-4, but won 11 of the final 14 points to complete their afternoon.
Offensively,
Chayney Barnhart led the effort for the Falcons with 14 kills on just 17 swings for a .765 hitting percentage. Joining Barnhart with double-digit kills were
Caitlin Lielbriedis (12 kills) and
Mackenzie Feight (11). Feight also collected 16 digs for the double-double.
Emma Swartz dished out 38 assists in the three-set match.
As a team, Messiah collected 13 service aces in the match.
What's Up Next
Messiah will be back in action on Wednesday when they travel to York to take on the Spartans at 7:00 p.m. in their third MAC Commonwealth match of the season.
