By Christopher Tremblay, Staff Sports Writer

With Head coach Samantha Redmond on maternity leave from the Franklin volleyball team, Emily Carens has continue to lead the Panthers on the verge of a tournament berth once again. 

Last year under Redmond guidance Franklin went 16-2 during the regular season earning themselves a ten seed in the Division 1 State Volleyball Tournament. The Panthers would sweep Wachusett 3-0 before edging out both Newton South and number two seed Haverhill 3-2 advancing to the Final 4. Once in the Semi-Finals, the Panthers fell to Barnstable the number three seed and was sent back home from the Cape 3-0. 

“Our goal coming into this year is to get back to the Final 4 and hopefully go further,” Carens said. We’ve lost seven seniors from that team, so this is a resetting in a way. This year we are much different, but one that is capable of getting back there.”

The interim coach is looking for the girls to just go out and continue to grow each and every day, and if they stay focused on one team at a time, she believes that they will have success.

Thus far this year, Carens has continued to have success with Franklin as the girls are currently 9-3 at the time of this writing; looking for at least one more win to secure a position in the State Tournament once again. Within the Hockomock League, Franklin is 7-3 and ranked 7th in Division 1 with still another 8 games remaining in their regular season.

Although a relatively young team with room to grow, the Panthers have managed to spread out their three losses and are looking to stay focused to get back to the State Tournament.

Carens will be relying on her three seniors (Olivia Valante, Brooke Daniels and Faith Edgehille) to help the squad continue to play to their potential. Co-Captain Valante is a defensive specialist for the Panthers and along with her consistent serving she is also playing phenomenal back row defense.

Daniels, the team’s setter, has been able to spread the ball around while moving the ball around the court. As the quarterback of the team, she is the one who is running the plays for Franklin while on the court. According to the coach, in addition to sharing the love, Daniels is one that can take her feedback and better herself to help the team.

Edgehille, the final senior, lines up in the libero position and brings the energy to the court. She is not only a leader, but also a hard worker who is extremely dedicated.

“I’ve known Faith since her freshman year on the JV team, and she is always looking to improve her game,” Carens said. “While her energy is unmatched, she just wants to go out on the court and help her team.”

The Coach noted that she feels extremely lucky to have three big leaders on the team that look to help in any way that they can.

“Their play helps to show the rest of the team that every point is the same win or lose,” Carens said. “If they continue to keep that energy up while minimizing our losses and not allowing mistakes to add up we will be ok. That positive attitude, no matter what is happening on the court, is vital to being successful.”

Another captain, Makayla Kuykendall is a junior outside hitter for the squad and recently surpassed her 500th kill for the Panthers. 

“It’s worthy of accomplishment and a big accomplishment for her,” the Coach said. “She’s getting the kills, but it’s her teammates who have helped her immensely get to this position by setting her up.”

Junior Olivia Alberti is another middle hitter for the team that brings positive energy to her game and along with Daniels have formed a connection over the years. The duo have been working together for the past three seasons and communicate well with one another on the court.

Two freshman who have stepped in to help the team to nine wins in their first 12 games are Charlotte Yeulenski and Emerson Delleo. According to the coach, both girls are a pleasure to coach – Yeulenski is a middle hitter that is willing to learn, while Delleo is an outside hitter who has had some powerful kills.

Over the years, Franklin usually only has had one freshman make the varsity team, but having the two this year is something that the coach didn’t expect. However, she did say that the two freshman have definitely earned their spots on the team. Sophomore Giannna Laurello is a right-side hitter and was the only freshman to make the squad last fall, this year she returns with experience.

Although the Panthers still have some quality games on their schedule, Carens is looking for the team to keep winning and would love to capture the Hockomock League Championship while definitely getting back to the Division 1 Final 4.

“Mini goals each day will help us to improve. A loss isn’t necessarily a loss; it’s feedback to what we need to do to get better,” Carens said. “We have also added some top-notch teams like Newton South and Barnstable to our schedule to help us prepare for the playoffs. Playing teams like them will show us what we need to work on.”

Right now, the Panthers are working on keeping focused on each game one day at a time, and if they can do that, they should not only have a high seed in the tournament but should be able to give their fans a deep run to the Final 4 and beyond.