ALBION, Mich. – The Franklin volleyball team hit the court for two games away from home on Saturday (Sept. 24), taking on Trine and Albion in tri-match action.
The Grizzlies (6-8) dropped a four-set battle to the Thunder (7-7) in the opener but rebounded to upset #18-ranked Albion in the final match of the day in five sets. By beating the Britons, Franklin secured their first win over a nationally-ranked team since Feb. 23, 2021 when they swept #3-ranked Transylvania at home.
Match One: Trine 3 – Franklin 1 (25-19, 26-24, 25-22, 28-26)
The Grizzlies ripped off a 6-1 run to start the second set but the Thunder fought back and held a 22-20 lead late game two. Two straight Grizzly kills knotted things up and Franklin would take four of the last five points to even things up at a game each.
But the Grizzlies would drop each of the next two sets in tightly contested fashion, with Trine closing things out in heart-breaking fashion for FC.
Kaitlyn Lavy led all players with 15 kills and
Miranda Wilson added 11 for FC.
Chloe Holder had four blocks, a pair of aces and seven kills in the match.
Billie Jarrett handed out 33 assists and added 16 digs while
Campbell Clark's 27 digs led all players.
Match Two: Franklin 3 – #18 Albion 2 (25-23, 13-25, 25-22, 16-25, 15-11)
The Grizzlies swung set one in their favor with a late run that led to victory. Down 19-16, the Grizzlies rattled off six of the next seven points and
Makalyn Miller put down the final kill to make it 1-0.
The Britons drew even with a win in game two but Franklin used another late-game rally in the third set to flip momentum. Facing a 20-15 deficit, the Grizzlies closed things out with a 10-2 run, book-ended by a tandem block from Miller and
Trinity Schroeder to put FC up 2-1.
Albion fought off the Griz in game four to set up the deciding fifth set. A 5-1 Franklin run early made it 9-5 Grizzlies and the gap remained that large until the Britons cut the lead to 13-11. But back-to-back kills from
Alyssa Zemlyak and Miller stuffed the comeback bid, giving Franklin a critical non-conference win.
Lavy led the Grizzlies with 14 kills while Miller (13 kills) and Wilson (12 kills) added to the attack. Jarrett and Clark tied for the team lead with 17 digs each and Jarrett handed out 46 assists. Schroeder led the defense with six total blocks, recoding a season-high.
Up Next
Franklin closes out the non-conference schedule on Tuesday (Sept. 27) night, traveling to Kentucky to meet the Centre Colonels. First serve is set for 7:00 p.m.
