FLORENCE, SC – Francis Marion University featured a balanced offensive attack on Friday afternoon (Oct. 23) with 60 kills on a .358 clip while adding 13 aces in a 3-1 victory over Barton College in Conference Carolinas women's volleyball divisional play in the Smith University Center.
With the win, the Patriots improve to 18-7 overall with a 14-3 mark in league play. Francis Marion holds a perfect 7-0 record in East Division competition and sits atop the standings with four matches remaining in the regular season. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs drop to 6-17 this season behind a 4-12 mark in conference action.
FMU returns to its home court tomorrow, Saturday, Oct. 24, to face Chowan University on Senior Day with the contest slated for 2 p.m.
The Patriots featured four players with double-digit kills, as senior outside hitter
Madilyn Gartner and sophomore outside hitter
Haleigh Kamer each tallied a game-high 14 kills. Gartner added seven digs, three blocks, and two aces, while Kamer completed a double-double with 13 digs, two blocks, and two aces. Senior opposite hitter
Camryn Faggart contributed 11 kills on a .385 hitting percentage, plus five blocks and two digs. Graduate student middle blocker
Vanessa Blake finished with 11 kills on a .579 clip while adding three blocks and two digs.
Sophomore
Aubrey Johnson directed the offense with 47 assists, plus six digs, three kills, and two service aces. Freshman libero
Alyssa Whiteside led the defensive efforts with 22 digs, five assists, and two aces, while senior defensive specialist
McKenna Wiseman totaled 14 digs, three assists, and four service aces. Sophomore middle blocker
McKayla Stockwell was stellar at the net, matching a career-high with six blocks.
In the first set, the Patriots climbed out to a quick 9-3 advantage behind five kills by Kamer before the Bulldogs managed to trim the deficit to 13-10. Francis Marion responded with four unanswered points, including a trio of kills by Gartner to stretch the lead to 17-10. With FMU ahead 18-12, the Patriots tallied seven straight points to capture the opening set, 25-12.
Barton established an 8-2 lead in the opening moments of the second set, but Francis Marion slowly closed the gap to 10-8 following a kill from Faggart. The Patriots would remain within striking distance of the Bulldogs until eventually grabbing a 21-20 edge after a 6-1 rally. Barton responded by scoring five of the final six points to seal the 25-22 victory.
FMU built a quick 8-4 lead in the third set before the Bulldogs stormed back to knot the contest at 8-8. The Patriots countered with four straight points to take a 12-8 advantage and carried the momentum into a 20-11 lead late in the set. Barton rallied to trim the deficit to 21-16, but a 4-1 run by Francis Marion captured the win by a 25-17 margin.
The Patriots held a 6-5 edge to begin the fourth set before scoring 10 consecutive points, which included five kills by Gartner and a pair of aces from Wiseman, 16-5. FMU maintained its significant lead and closed out the match with six unanswered points as an ace by Johnson sealed the victory, 25-9.
