The Fitchburg State Volleyball team took on Anna Maria in a match that ended in four sets on senior night for the Falcons. The match took place on October 27, at 7:00 PM. With the loss, the Falcons dropped to 2-20, or 1-5 in the MASCAC, as Anna Maria climbed to 7-17 on the season.  Fitchburg honored 5 seniors before the game, celebrating the time that they have spent with the team over their collegiate careers. The Seniors that were honored consisted of Leah Sheehan, Lauren Ricardi, Jillian Laabs, Perry Joubert, and Amy Coelho.  

The Falcons were only able to salvage one set, that being the 3rd, in which they won, 25-15.  This would be the only set they would come out on top however, as Anna Maria was able to hold the Falcons off for most of the night. The First and second sets were made extremely close by the Falcons, losing only 23-25 in both games. If the home squad could have had a couple things go right for them in these frames, it is very possible that they could have squeaked out a win against a talented Anna Maria team. The Bobcats were able to take the fourth set by a score of 21-25 securing the win in four.  

The story of the match was early set leads, as the team that jumped out quickly was usually the one who was able to take home the set.  In the first set, Anna Maria was able to set the tone by jumping out to a 9-3 lead early. The next set was more of the same, as they came out of the gate hot, securing a 9-5 cushion.  They grabbed a commanding 12-1 lead and never looked back, winning the set by 10, an impressive margin. The final set was led by the Bobcats once again being the aggressor, killing the Falcon’s momentum from the previous set. The match was also characterized by runs, as Anna Maria was able to string together points in bunches, completely shifting the momentum of the set at times. A 6-0 run at the end of the fourth set was what would ultimately seize the match for the Bobcats.  

The Falcons had a few standouts in the match, one of which being senior Lauren Ricardi, who ended up leading the match with 14 kills. Ricardi also contributed with two digs and two solo blocks. Samantha Mirra led Fitchburg with 19 digs and 8 kills, doing it all for the Falcons on the night. Meredith Taylor led the match for the Falcons, racking up 18 assists.  

The Falcons travel to Salem State on Thursday, October 28 to wrap up their season. There they will look to pick up a third win, sending their seniors off with a positive result, which is something that has been hard to come by for the green and gold this season. A win would give the Falcons a second mark in the column in MASCAC play.