Franklin, Ind. - The Franklin College volleyball team lost a hard-fought five-set thriller to rival Hanover College (22-25, 31-29, 26-24, 15-25, 15-13) in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) action on Wednesday from the Spurlock Center.

Behind a strong hitting attack, Franklin (15-9, 5-2 HCAC) battled back from a 2-1 set deficit to force a deciding fifth set. The Grizzlies used nine kills compared to just two hitting errors to take the fourth set.

In the fifth set, the two teams battled back-and-forth to decide the victory. Hanover led 13-9, before the hosts rattled off four straight points to square the set at 13-13. The Panthers however withstood the charge to capture the next points and win the competitive match.

Franklin won the opening set 25-22 before dropping the next two sets in extended fashion. Hanover took the second set 31-29 before winning the third frame 26-24.

Junior Emily Young (Avon, Ind./Avon) led Franklin's offensive attack with 14 kills. Freshman Brooke Harvey (Clinton, Ind./South Vermillion) and junior Kourtney Settle (Vallonia, Ind./Brownstown Central) each added 11 kills. Senior Jordan Finke (Indianapolis, Ind./Lutheran) chipped in eight kills.

Sophomore Ashley Bazier (Terre Haute, Ind./Terre Haute South) recorded 43 assists, marking the third time this season she has surpassed 40 or more assists in a match. Bazier also tallied 20 digs defensively.

Junior Mackenzie Wieneke (Seymour, Ind./Seymour) led the team with 31 digs. Classmate Theresa Brown (Indianapolis, Ind./Franklin Central) recorded 16 digs, while freshman Carrigan Peak (Mishawaka, Ind./Mishawaka) rounded out the effort with 11 digs.

The Grizzlies are tied for second place in the HCAC heading into the final two weeks of the regular season.

Franklin returns to action when it travels to Cincinnati, Ohio on Saturday, October 25 for a pair of matches. The team battles Mount St. Joseph University in a conference match at 1 p.m. before facing Adrian College (Mich.) at 3 p.m.