Francis Marion rebounds with sweep of first-place Pirates
FLORENCE, SC - Rebounding from a conference road loss earlier in the week, the Francis Marion University volleyball team moved back into a first-place tie in the Peach Belt Conference standing with a three-set sweep (25-20, 25-18, 25-22) of the PBC's top team Armstrong Atlantic State University, Saturday afternoon (Oct. 25).
Francis Marion and AASU are now tied for the conference lead with identical 19-6 overall records and 5-2 PBC marks. The Patriots avenged a three-set sweep by the Pirates two weeks ago in Savannah, Ga.
Honored prior to the start of the Senior Day match, Jessica Lombardi paced FMU with 14 kills, while senior setter Jenna Kaiser handed out 31 assists. Appropriately, Lombardi ended the match with a kill. She possesses career totals of 1,222 kills and 946 digs, while Kaiser ranks 10th all-time in the PBC with 3,746 assists and also has 1,042 career digs.
FMU freshman Ashlyn Underhill added 10 kills, while sophomore libero Kelsie Deaton dug up a game-high 13 balls and junior Jess O'Leary added 11 digs. Junior middleblocker Caitlin Simpson came off the Patriot bench for some of her most extensive minutes of 2008 and registered three kills and six block assists.
Juniors Gwendolyn Clarke and Michele Remlinger led AASU with seven kills apiece. Sophomore setter Hannah Segebart recorded 27 assists and six digs, while freshman Torrie Bevolo had six kills and a team-high 12 digs.
Francis Marion will play at Lander on Friday at 7 p.m., while AASU plays at Valdosta State University on Friday at 6 p.m.
Francis Marion Univ. def. Armstrong Atlantic 25-20,25-18,25-22
Armstrong Atlantic (19-6 , 5-2) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Remlinger,
Michele 7-0-2; Clarke, Gwendolyn 7-0-1; Bevolo, Torrie 6-0-0;
Vidovich, Rindy 6-1-2; Budd, Brendyce 3-1-2; Richards, Casie 3-0-1;
Birkemeier, Amy 3-0-0; Segebart, Hannah 2-0-1; Marinova, Marina 1-0-0;
Howett, Casey 0-1-0; Edgeworth, Natalie 0-1-0; Totals 38-4-5.0.
(Assists) - Segebart, Hannah 27. (Dig leaders) - Bevolo, Torrie 12;
Howett, Casey 9
Francis Marion Univ. (19-6 , 5-2) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Lombardi,
Jessica 14-0-4; Underhill, Ashlyn 10-0-1; Mitchell, Amanda 6-0-5;
Simpson, Caitlin 3-0-6; Eggert, Mallory 2-0-1; Kaiser, Jenna 2-0-3;
Crook, Ashlee 2-1-2; O'Leary, Jess 0-1-0; Totals 39-2-11.0. (Assists)
- Kaiser, Jenna 31. (Dig leaders) - Deaton, Kelsie 13; O'Leary, Jess
11; Kaiser, Jenna 8
Site: Florence, SC (Smith Univ. Center) ; Date: Oct 25, 2008 Attend: 123 Time: 1:20 ; Referees: Holley Meckley, Morgan Shannon ; Liberos: Deaton (FMU), Howett (AASU)
