CLARION – Coming off its first PSAC Title since 1988, the Clarion University women's volleyball team is ready to set its sights on its next goal: the NCAA Division II playoffs.
The Golden Eagles (29-4), the top-seed in the NCAA D-II Atlantic Region, will face eighth-seeded Chowan (N.C.) in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament at 2:30 p.m. Friday at Edinboro's McComb Fieldhouse.
Chowan (22-12) won the CIAA Conference championship with a 3-2 win over Saint Augustines Nov. 7 and hasn't played since. It was the Hawks second straight CIAA Conference title.
“They are a good team,” Clarion's fourth-year head coach Jennifer Harrison, who was named the PSAC-West Coach of the Year earlier in the week, said. “They won their conference title, and any opponent you play at this time of year you can't look past.”
Harrison knows the Hawks have two really strong hitters in junior outside hitter Victoria Lewis and sophomore middle blocker Karina Monroe.
Lewis leads Chowan with 406 kills (3.44 per set) while adding 276 digs (2.34 per set), while Monroe adds 332 kills (2.74 per set) and 109 blocks (0.90 per set).
“From everything we have heard, we need to make sure we contain Lewis and Monroe,” Harrison said. “But there are a lot of unknowns about Chowan as well. Hopefully, early on in the match we can get a handle on what they are doing and make the adjustments that need to be made. That's something we have improved on this year, making in-match adjustments.”
In addition to Lewis and Monroe, Chowan also features sophomore setter Callie Armistead (831 set assists) and a host of offensive and defensive weapons that are pretty even statistical wise.
Clarion is paced by the PSAC-West Athlete of the Year junior outside hitter
Kellie Bartman.
Bartman ranks fourth in the PSAC and 43rd in the nation in kills per set at 3.47 while adding 261 digs (2.33 per set). She has averaged 4.3 kills per set since Sept. 24 and has recorded 20 straight matches of double-digit kills and eight kill-dig double-doubles.
Second-team All-PSAC-West performer
Rebecca Webb, a sophomore middle hitter, ranks sixth in the PSAC in blocks while adding 229 kills (2.06 per set) and a .282 hitting percentage (229 kills, 66 errors, 578 attempts). She is 15
th in school history with 253 career blocks.
Also helping to propel Clarion's offense is junior outside hitter
Kaitlyn Anderson who has 250 kills (2.78 per set) while adding 203 digs (2.26 per set) and freshman middle hitter
Corinne Manley (210 kills, 1.98 kps, 79 blocks).
Junior setter
Amanda Gough, who is second-team All-PSAC-West for the second straight year, ranks third in the PSAC in set assists per set with 9.69 while recording 1,008 assists. She adds 262 digs (2.52 per set), 84 kills and 34 blocks. She has 13 assist-dig double-doubles on the season and is the third player in school history with 3,000 career set assists (3,008).
Junior Libero
Rhianon Brady paces the defense and ranks third in the PSAC and fifth in the nation in digs per set (6.39) while recording 722 digs this season, the second most in school history behind her 729 last year. She also ranks third in school history with 1,938 career digs.
NOTES – Clarion, who won the PSAC-West title for the first time in school history this year, is in the NCAA D-II Playoffs for the second straight year, the third time in Harrison's four years at Clarion and for the seventh time in school history with all seven appearances coming since 2002. The Golden Eagles are looking for their second NCAA D-II playoff win. They beat Lees-McRae 3-1 in 2007 for their first-ever NCAA Division II playoff win and are 1-6 all time in the NCAA D-II playoffs. Clarion also qualified for the EAIAW Regional Tournament in 1977 going 2-2 with wins over MIT and Western Maryland (now McDaniel) … Harrison is one win away from 100 in her career. She has a four-year record of 99-35 at Clarion. She would be the second coach in Clarion history with 100 wins joining Tracey Fluharty (132-52 from 2001-2006) … Clarion is the top seed in the NCAA Atlantic Region, the first time in school history the Golden Eagles have been a No. 1 seed … Chowan lost to California (Pa.) 3-0 (25-15, 25-15. 25-6) in last year's NCAA D-II Tournament.
