MARIETTA, Ohio – Coming off a strong start to their weekend the night before, the Franklin College volleyball team looked to keep momentum going on Saturday at the BSN Sports River City Classic and matchups with Washington & Jefferson and Capital.

Franklin (3-1) completed a perfect weekend after taking both matchups. In the opener, the Grizzly outside and middle hitters turned in another strong showing in a four-set win over W&J 25-8, 25-22, 22-25, 25-21. The afternoon session saw the Grizzlies and Capital go the distance with Franklin pulling out a thrilling win in five sets, 22-25, 25-21, 25-18, 27-25, 15-13. 

Game One: Franklin 3 – W&J 1
Set one was all Grizzlies, with Franklin blowing by the Presidents and closing out the opening game with a 13-1 run. The Grizzlies hit .500 in the set with Sara Allen and Chloe Holder each recording four kills. Game two saw Franklin take three of the final four points to close out a competitive game and take a two-set lead.

The Presidents held off defeat with a win in the third set, but Franklin put the match away with a 17-kill performance in the fourth set and five kills each from Alyssa Zemlyak and Makalyn Miller.

Miller turned in a great performance on the pins, leading FC with 15 kills. Allen and Holder also hit double digits in kills with 13 and 10, respectively. Billie Jarrett handed out 50 assists and led the team with four aces to start a strong day for the junior setter. Allison Thompson led the Grizzly back line with 23 digs.

Game Two: Franklin 3 – Capital 2
After dropping the first set, Franklin drew even after pulling away midway through set two and riding that to a four-point win. The Grizzlies moved to within a game of victory after hitting .341 as a team in the third game while limiting the Capital attack to .070 on their swings.

Franklin dropped a hard-fought fourth set as Capital notched 16 kills from the offense to stay alive. Neither team could gain separation in the final set until Jarrett surprised Capital with back-to-back kills that closed out the game.

Jarrett capped a stellar weekend with a career-high seven kills and a 52-assist performance that moved her past the 1,000 career assist mark. Freshman Miranda Wilson went off for a career-high 24 kills and 19 digs for her second double-double of the young season.

Allen added 13 kills and Miller had 10 to help aid the Grizzly attack. Thompson's 25 digs were a team-high, as five Grizzlies all hit double figures in digs in the match.

Up next for the Grizzlies is a trip to Louisville, Ky. on Wednesday (Sept. 8) night for a showdown against Spalding University. First serve is set for 7:00 p.m.