AMHERST, N.Y. – The Golden Eagle volleyball team ran up their season-opening streak to six matches, taking a pair of victories at the Daemen Invitational on Sunday afternoon. Clarion defeated PSAC foe Mercyhurst 3-0 (25-22, 25-12, 25-21) and Daemen 3-1 (17-25, 25-13, 25-23, 25-15) in back-to-back matches at Lumdsden Gymnasium.
It is Clarion's longest win streak to open a season since the Golden Eagles took 13 straight to start off the 2014 season. That year they went 30-5 overall.
Clarion 3, Mercyhurst 0
Recap: The Golden Eagles came out on top over the Lakers thanks to another strong defensive showing, holding Mercyhurst to just a .047 attack percentage. They out-dug the Lakers 39-29, with
Abigail Selfridge recording a match-high 11 digs.
Julia Piccolino had a match-high 10 kills and a remarkable seven service aces, part of a 10-5 advantage for the Golden Eagles in the latter category.
Cassidy Snider returned to action with nine kills and a .316 attack percentage, while
Lauren Aichinger added seven kills and a .385 attack percentage.
London Fuller had 25 assists and eight digs.
Clarion puled ahead of the Lakers 10-5 on a solo block and a kill by Piccolino on consecutive points, but a 12-3 run by Mercyhurst put the latter ahead 22-21 late in the first set. The Golden Eagles responded with four straight points of their own, starting with a kill by Piccolino. Aichinger broke the tie with a block, and Piccolino forced set point with a kill that made it 24-22. Aichinger dropped a kill on the final point of the set put the Golden Eagles ahead in the match.
The second set was not nearly as kind to the Lakers, as Clarion went on a 12-1 run that included eight straight points at one juncture. Snider bounced a kill to make it 14-6, and Piccolino followed with an ace on the next point to up the lead to nine points. Snider eventually made it 20-7 with a kill and Piccolino finished off set point with a kill at 25-12. The third set was tight, with Mercyhurst scoring four straight at one point to pull within 20-18, but Clarion scored four straight – including two aces by Piccolino – to set up a match point kill by Aichinger.
Clarion 3, Daemen 1
Recap: The Wildcats became the first team this season to even take a set from the Golden Eagles, snapping what had been 15 consecutive set wins for Clarion. That was the longest such streak to start a season since a 16-set win streak for the Golden Eagles in 2013.
That said, it was an inspired effort by the Golden Eagles to defeat the Wildcats on their home court, winning three straight down the stretch in impressive fashion to improve to 6-0. Clarion hit a scintillating .326 in the match, including .400 in the final three sets. The Golden Eagles committed just six combined errors in the final three sets. Snider posted a match-high 15 kills while Fuller added a double-double of 43 assists and 10 digs, and came up just shy of a triple-double with eight kills.
Amy Regrut hit .381 while contributing nine kills.
The Wildcats took the first set on a long run late, scoring 10 of 12 points at one juncture to pull ahead 24-16. Maggie Burns notched a kill to take the set 25-17. The second set was dominating for the Golden Eagles, though, as they rolled to a 25-13 win. Clarion scored seven straight at one point to turn it into a double-digit lead, with Snider and Regrut contributing points along the way. Fuller blocked Burns to push the lead to 21-12, and Aichinger forced set point with a block of Sam Logan. A Daemen error led to Clarion tying the team match at 1-1.
The Wildcats held the advantage for much of the second set, and in fact led 21-20 after a kill by Logan. Clarion countered with three straight points, including a block by
Alyson Peters and a kill by Fuller to make it a 23-21 lead. Snider forced set point with a kill at 24-22, and then finished it off with a kill two points later to make it 25-23. The Golden Eagles dominated the fourth set en route to the team victory, leading 18-8 at one juncture. Aichinger forced match point with a kill and Fuller finished it off with a solo block, rejecting Logan for the win.
