ROCKLIN, Calif. – St. Francis tallied only eight more kills than errors for a hitting average of .083 in falling in three sets to top-ranked Rocklin in the varsity finale of a Sierra Foothill League girls' volleyball tripleheader Wednesday evening.

The Troubadours dip to 22-5 for the season with a 3-5 record in league play. The Thunder, ranked No. 11 in the state and No. 1 in the Sac-Joaquin Section by MaxPreps, improves to 21-3 overall with an unblemished 8-0 SFL mark.

Junior outside hitter Hailey Sutton managed 10 kills while fellow junior left-sider Sophia Palmeri added six. However, SF totaled just 23 kills against 15 errors, with just two of those miscues coming as a result of Rocklin blocks. Sophia Palmeri also led the way with 12 of St. Francis' 44 digs while fielding almost half (27) of Rocklin's 60 serves. Libero Malia Fat picked up eight digs with DS Kelsey Granner scooping up six more.

Defensively at the net, the middle tandem of Marissa Jensen and Mercy Collier were the only Troubies to score kills without an error, but did so in only 10 total attempts. Collier did contribute on four of her team's seven blocks: two with Sutton in the first and third frames, plus one each with Sidney Palmeri and Layla Hernandez in the second.

The Troubies led only once in the entire match, taking a 3-2 edge on back-to-back Jensen points to start the second set. Jensen combined with Hernandez on a stuff against Gianna Bogan, then followed by smacking down a one ball. But Bogan avenged that block with two kills and a stuff of her own in propelling her team out to an 8-4 edge.

St. Francis also managed to keep pace with its host early in the first, when a net violation tied the match for a fourth time at 11-11. The Thunder then pulled away to a 19-13 advantage, thanks in part to back-to-back aces from junior Allison Hartsoch. Rocklin senior Addy Scheitlin, who hit her milestone 1,000th career kill on her team's sixth point of the first set, also had consecutive kills in the subsequent 8-2 run. Scheitlin finished with a match-high 14 kills.

Prior to the varsity showdown, both frosh and junior varsity matches played in adjacent gyms, with St. Francis earning sweeps in both. The Troubie frosh rolled to a 25-9, 25-18 victory while sophomore Lyla Faruzzi hit 7-1-17 (.353) with two aces in the jayvees' 25-16, 25-11 win next door.

The St. Francis freshman improve to 25-2 for the year and remain unbeaten against the SFL at 8-0. The JV squad moved to similar records: 26-3 overall and an 8-0 league ledger.

All three SF programs host an eight-team tournament of "feeder" schools from the Parochial Athletic League on Saturday, the remain at home for home matches against Folsom (Monday) and Granite Bay (Oct. 8) the following week. Note: Wednesday's tilt against the Grizzlies serves as PAL Night, with an autograph session for all fans held after the varsity nightcap.