After both having extra time off, the Franklin Community Grizzly Cubs and the Columbus East Olympians will shake off the rust and duke it out at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. Franklin Community is coming into the contest on a three-game losing streak.
On Thursday, Franklin Community came up short against Columbus North and fell 3-1. While the Grizzly Cubs didn't get the win, they did start the game off strong, beating the Bull Dogs 25-20 in the first set.
Franklin Community started the match hot and won the first set, but they struggled down the stretch and lost the last three. Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 20-25, 25-16, 25-21, 25-18.
Despite the defeat, Franklin Community saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Nila Netter had 11 digs and three aces.
Meanwhile, Columbus East lost 3-0 to Roncalli on Thursday. The Olympians have struggled against the Royals recently, as the game was their seventh consecutive lost matchup.
The final score came out to 25-13, 25-10, 25-18.
Franklin Community's loss dropped their record down to 22-7. As for Columbus East, their defeat dropped their record down to 11-18.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Thursday's matchup: Franklin Community has really dialed in their serving this season, having averaged 8.9 aces per game. However, it's not like Columbus East struggles in that department as they've been averaging 5.9 aces. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Franklin Community beat Columbus East 3-1 in their previous meeting back in August. Will the Grizzly Cubs repeat their success, or do the Olympians have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
