Ravens hit .340 with 39 kills in Stonehill match

RINDGE, N.H. (October 6, 2012) – Sophomore outside hitter Catie Swiderski (Rocky Point, N.Y.) racked up a match-best 11 kills and hit .417 over 24 attempts on Saturday afternoon to lead the Franklin Pierce University volleyball team to a 3-0 sweep of Stonehill in Northeast-10 Conference play at the Fieldhouse. Later in the day, 19 kills for junior right side Katarina Sretenovic led NYIT to a 3-1 win over Franklin Pierce in non-conference play.

With the split, Franklin Pierce is now 9-11 (3-1 Northeast-10). Stonehill fell to 8-8 (3-3 Northeast-10), while NYIT improved to 11-4 (4-1 East Coast). In the first match, the Ravens swept Stonehill by set scores of 25-18, 25-23 and 25-14. In the second match, NYIT picked up the four-set victory with scores of 25-17, 25-20, 19-25 and 25-20.

Already leading Stonehill two sets to none and leading 10-9 in the third set, Franklin Pierce got the ball back on a ball-handling error by the Skyhawks. Junior setter Stephanie Svorinic (Scottsdale, Ariz.) ran off three straight points on her serve to make it 14-9. The small spurt kick-started a much bigger run, as the Ravens took 15 of 20 points to storm to the third-set victory and the sweep. Swiderski had three of her 11 kills in the run, while junior middle Katie Jackson (Centennial, Colo.) and junior outside hitter Natasha Ray (Colorado Springs, Colo.) finished off the match with back-to-back tandem blocks.

Though Swiderski was the only Raven in double digits offensively, the team was relentlessly efficient on the afternoon, putting down 39 kills in just 94 attempts, while committing only seven errors along the way. Junior right side Ashley Bruce (Hampton Falls, N.H.) led all players with a .667 attack percentage, as she banged out eight kills without an error over 12 attempts. Also over .300 (minimum 10 attempts) was Jackson, who finished with seven kills and two errors over 13 swings to hit .385. The offense worked primarily off the set of Svorinic, who finished with 23 assists. Swiderski and junior libero Lauren Miller (Alexandria, Ind.) tied for the match lead with four aces each.

Defensively, Ray led all players with 15 digs and was joined in double digits by Miller (14). The duo shouldered nearly all of the back row's load, as no other Franklin Pierce player collected more than three digs. At the net, Jackson and Ray finished with a match-high four blocks each.

For Stonehill, sophomore middle Mary-Kate Catton led the team with nine kills and hit .562 without an error over 16 attempts. Junior right side Kristen Arvidson added eight kills and hit .312 over 16 swings. The Skyhawks used sophomore setter Emily Iverson to key the offense; she dished out a match-best 30 assists.

Defensively, senior libero Erin Kelly was the only Stonehill player in double digits with 14 digs, while four different Skyhawks collected one block assist each.

Against NYIT, Ray led the Ravens with 13 kills, as she hit .294 with just three errors over 34 attempts. Freshman middle Lina Kleinschmidt (Santa Barbara, Calif.) and Bruce chipped in eight more kills apiece, with the former hitting .375 over 16 swings. Svorinic still did much of the setting and finished with 22 assists, while freshman Kellee Cranston (Reno, Nev.) contributed 11 of her own.

Defensively, Miller led all players with 17 digs, while Swiderski added eight and Ray chipped in seven to narrowly miss a double-double. Up front, Kleinschmidt tied for the match lead with three blocks (one solo).

For NYIT, junior outside hitter Shelby Cable served as a second option, finishing with 18 kills, just one behind Sretenovic. Junior setter Marija Jovanovic and junior outside hitter Savannah Donarski added eight kills each, with the former hitting .333 over 18 attempts. Jovanovic also ran the offense, dishing out a match-high 51 assists.

Defensively for the Bears, senior libero Tugce Sirdas racked up 15 digs and was joined in double digits by Cable, who added 10 digs to complete a double-double. Jovanovic contributed on defense as well, adding eight digs to finish one kill and two digs shy of a triple-double. At the net, junior middle Kelly Brown matched Kleinschmidt with three block assists.

The Ravens return to the court on Saturday, Oct. 13, when they travel to Bentley for a Northeast-10 Conference match. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Dana Center in Waltham, Mass.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce volleyball apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' brand new online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).