Gannon Women's Volleyball Looks to Clinch PSAC Playoff Berth at Home

ERIE, Pa. - The Gannon women’s volleyball team will try to clinch the final spot in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) volleyball tournament at home this weekend. A win over Clarion on Friday, November 5 or Slippery Rock on Saturday, November 6 would guarantee the Lady Knights a spot in the field. Gannon can also qualify with an Indiana (Pa.) loss. 

Live game day statistics for both matches will be available at http://www.gannon.edu/athletics/women/volleyba/lstats/XLIVE.HTM. 

America One will broadcast Friday’s match against Clarion live at http://www.b2livetv.com/partner_members.asp?id=85. 

A spot in the PSAC tournament this season would represent back-to-back conference tournament appearances for the first time since the 2002 and 2003 seasons when Gannon was a member of Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC). Seven of the eight playoff teams have been determined with Clarion already claiming the top seed in the Western Division. 

Friday night Gannon will face off against Clarion (26-3, 17-1) at 7 p.m. The Lady Knights fell to the Lady Eagles last month in a five-set thriller, but hope to use the home-court advantage to earn the victory in the rematch. Clarion boasts one of the top defenses in the league, holding opponents to just a .116 hitting percentage this season. 

However, the Lady Eagles will have to deal with Lauren Sazama, (St. Louis, Mo. / Oakville) who is second in the PSAC this season in kills per set (3.70). The sophomore also ranks 14th in the country in aces per set (0.62). 

Gannon will look to complete the season sweep of Slippery Rock (8-10, 1-10) on Saturday, after defeating the Rock 3-0 in the first meeting this season. 

Gannon will honor a pair of seniors after the match as Kendall Fischer (Macedonia, Ohio / Nordonia) and Jess Saunders (Hinckley, Ohio / Highland) will play their final home matches in a Gannon uniform. 

Saunders has 977 digs in her career and will try to surpass the 1000-dig mark this weekend, making her just the 11th player in Gannon history to reach the milestone. Fischer, a versatile player for Gannon during her four years, has set career-best marks in both aces (23) and assists (281) this season. 

A weekend sweep would give Gannon back-to-back seasons of at least 20 wins for the first time since the 1994 and 1995 seasons.