SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – The Clarion volleyball team fell in the first round of the PSAC Tournament quarterfinals on Tuesday night, dropping a 3-0 decision to second-seeded Shippensburg at Heiges Field House.(Photo courtesy of Clarion University Athletics)
The Golden Eagles (19-12) likely finish their season tonight, though the possibility of an at-large bid to the NCAA Atlantic Regional remains.
The Raiders hit .250 for the match and held the Golden Eagles to just a .114 hitting percentage, with Clarion recording just 32 team kills compared to 51 for Shippensburg. The first and third sets proved to be the closest between the two teams as the Golden Eagles had opportunities to win each, but the Raiders held on for the victory in both.
Julia Holden recorded 11 kills to reach 1,439 kills for her career, putting her in sole possession of fifth place in Clarion history. Her 489 kills in 2019 rank sixth for a single season at Clarion, and are the most for a Golden Eagle since Colleen Sherk (517) and Sara Heyl (531) each topped 500 kills in 2004. Chrissy Cotton had a match-high 25 digs to give her 1,578 in her career, putting her in sixth-place all-time with one more season to play.
The first set was tightly contested as neither team staked out a significant lead early on, though the Raiders did hold a 17-13 advantage at one point in the set. Clarion nearly erased that lead with a 3-0 run, starting with a kill by Lauren Aichinger and including a block by Holly Pittman and Aubrey Wrona. Another 3-0 run put Clarion in the lead, starting with a kill by Wrona and ending on one by Holden to make it a 20-19 advantage. The Golden Eagles took a 22-20 lead on an attack error by Shippensburg but the Raiders came out of a timeout with five straight points, winning the set 25-22 on a block error by Holden.
The Raiders virtually controlled the second set from the outset, leading 20-14 at one point en route to a 25-16 set win and putting themselves ahead 2-0 in the team match. It seemed that might continue into the third after Shippensburg opened on a 4-0 run, but the Golden Eagles clawed back late and pulled to within two points. A 3-0 run that included a kill by Lydia Leiner and an ace by Cambron Hampton made it just 22-20, and Wrona posted a kill to pull within 23-21. Shippensburg scored the final two points of the set, though, taking the game and the match.
