Gannon Women's Volleyball Team Swept by Clarion in PSAC Tournament

CLARION, Pa. - Clarion proved why they were the top seed in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division Tuesday night as they handed a 3-0 sweep to the Lady Knights in the PSAC Tournament quarterfinal match by scores of 25-20, 25-16 and 25-19.

Gannon struggled offensively as the Lady Knights hit just .084, committing 22 errors in the match. Clarion’s defense proved tough in the match as the Lady Eagles recorded 59 digs in the match to Gannon’s 46.

Clarion came out strong to start the match, holding a lead through most of the first set, until a Morgan Reineke (New Knoxville, Ohio / New Knoxville) service and a Lauren Sazama (St. Louis, Mo. / Oakville) kill on back-to-back plays gave Gannon a 13-12 lead. After even play for several points, Clarion would re-take the lead and stretch it to 22-19 before the Golden Eagles would score three of the final four points to secure the win.

The Lady Knights faced an 11-4 deficit early in the second set, but made it difficult for the Golden Eagles to close it out as Gannon forced Clarion to four set points. However the lead proved too much to overcome as Clarion took a 2-0 lead with the 25-16 win.

Gannon used the momentum from the end of the second set and played point-for-point with Clarion through the first half of the set. A Clarion run would give them the 15-11 edge and the Lady Eagles would roll to a 25-19 victory.

Sazama was the only Lady Knight to reach double-digit kills, recording 12. The sophomore also added 12 digs and an ace in the losing effort. Reineke turned in a nine-kill effort with six digs. Kara Cullen (Marstons Mills, Mass. / Barnstable) hit .263 in the match with seven kills.

Gannon falls to 20-9 on the season while Clarion is now 27-4. The Lady Eagles advance to the PSAC semifinals to face the winner of the Shippensburg-Kutztown match.

Gannon will wait for the announcement of the NCAA Division II Volleyball Tournament field on Sunday, November 14. The PSAC, West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC) and Central Intercollegiate Athletics Association (CIAA) champions receive automatic bids. The next five teams in the final regional rankings will receive at-large bids to complete the eight team field in the Atlantic region. In the most recent regional rankings, released November 3, the Lady Knights were ranked fifth.