JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Thanks to another dazzling offensive display, the Golden Eagle volleyball team won their fourth straight match on Saturday afternoon, defeating Pitt-Johnstown 3-0 (25-18, 25-18, 25-14) in PSAC West action. Clarion (14-6, 6-2 PSAC West) hit .339 as a team for the match, committing just 12 errors on 109 attempts, marking their second straight match where they hit better than .330.
 
The outside hitters carried the water for the Golden Eagles against the Mountain Cats, with Cassidy Snider posting a 17-3-32-.438 attack line and Julia Piccolino going off for a 16-2-31-.452 mark. Piccolino was also effectively defensively, recording 14 digs for her eighth double-double of the season. Aubrey Wrona was solid in all six rotations, adding eight kills and 11 digs.
 
Setter London Fuller continued to excel in directing the Clarion offense, passing out 43 assists in just three sets while her team hit at an excellent .339 clip. Abigail Selfridge led the defense with a match-high 16 digs.
 
UPJ jumped out to a 4-0 lead to start the first set and led the Golden Eagles 13-8 at one point. Clarion responded by scoring nine of the next 10 points, pulling to within one point on a service ace by Cambron Hampton and taking the lead at 15-14 on a kill by Wrona. Snider bumped the advantage to 16-14 with a kill, and Fuller served up an ace off Lualis Alvarado to make it a three-point lead. The Mountain Cats scarcely pulled any closer the rest of the way, and Lauren Aichinger closed out the 25-18 set win with a kill.
 
The match was never again as competitive as that first set, with Clarion taking a quick 10-6 lead on the Mountain Cats in the second set as Fuller blocked Alvarado. Piccolino gave the Golden Eagles the race to 15 points with a kill at 15-11, though UPJ pulled to within 18-15 after a 3-0 run. A service error by Molly Ayres gave Clarion a 21-17 advantage and proved all they would need to dominate the rest of the set, with the Golden Eagles coring five of the last six points. Annie Koester got the kill on set point to make it 25-18, giving Clarion a 2-0 match edge. Clarion came out blasting in the third set, hitting .472 by recording 20 kills on 36 attempts with just three errors. The lead eventually reached double-digits after back-to-back kills by Piccolino made it 22-11, and Wrona finished off the match with a kill at 25-14.