CLARION, Pa. – Facing their first conference opponent of the year, the Clarion volleyball team scored six straight points in the fourth set to put away the Pitt-Johnstown Mountain Cats 3-1 (25-14, 23-25, 25-19, 25-22) on Friday night.  The Golden Eagles (10-3, 1-0 PSAC) will look for a perfect start to PSAC play tomorrow afternoon when they host Shippensburg.
 
Clarion and Pitt-Johnstown traded volleys in the first three sets, with the Golden Eagles handily winning the first and third sets and the Mountain Cats eking out a win in the second.  It looked like the fourth set might go the Mountain Cats' way as well after they took a 22-20 lead, but the Golden Eagles recovered to defeat the reigning PSAC Tournament champions.  Lauryn Driscoll opened the run with a kill, and tacked on with a service ace to pull within 22-21.  The duo of Julia Holden and Olivia Olson then blocked Caitlin Vrabel to tie the score, and Holden bounced a kill on the next point to make it 23-22 and force a Mountain Cat timeout.
 
The momentum stayed with Clarion after the break, starting with an error by Noelle Carota that put the Golden Eagles at match point.  Driscoll finished it from there, acing Maura Brehl to complete the set and match victory.
 
The Golden Eagle defense stymied Pitt-Johnstown all night long, holding them to a .069 hitting percentage and two sets in the negative.  Clarion out-blocked UPJ 9-5 and held a 75-71 advantage in digs.
 
Olson led the Golden Eagles with 16 kills, followed by 14 for Holden and 12 for Aubrey Wrona.  Chrissy Cotton had a match-high 29 digs while Leah Vensel dished out 54 assists and dug 11 balls.
 
Clarion rode a big wave of momentum in the first set to a dominant 25-15 win, breaking a 6-6 tie on a kill by Wrona and going from there.  Marissa Robertson notched a kill to put her team ahead 14-6, and Driscoll capped the 9-0 run with a kill to make it a nine-point advantage.  The lead reached double-digits when Olson and Holden blocked Carota to make it 22-12, and Olson finished off the set with a kill from the middle.
 
The Mountain Cats rallied from a 22-20 deficit in the second set, scoring five of the final six points to tie the overall match at 1-1.  Clarion countered by pulling away midway through the third set, turning an 8-8 tie into a 14-11 advantage after a 6-3 run.  Holden blocked Carota solo to make it 19-14, and Olson added back-to-back kills to make it 24-15.  She completed the series with another kill on set point, putting the Golden Eagles ahead 2-1 at the time.