GREENSBURG, Pa. — The Golden Eagle volleyball team took a 2-0 lead on the road but had to hold off a feisty Seton Hill team on Saturday, defeating the Griffins 3-2 (25-20, 25-10, 23-25, 19-25, 15-12). The Golden Eagles held the Griffins to a .097 hitting percentage for the match and then caught fire themselves in the fifth set, hitting .391 in the final frame.
The Golden Eagles won four of the final five points in the fifth set, moving ahead on a Griffins attack error at 12-11 before Finley Kearney and Taylor Haupt added kills and Kearney finished the set with another kill. Earlier, the Golden Eagles answered the Griffins' 7-6 edge with a Haupt kill, then used kills from Natalie Karrick and Raegan Stader to move in front 10-8. The Griffins tied the set again at 11-11, but the Golden Eagles responded immediately and kept the late pressure on behind Lauren Fjerstad's serve. The Golden Eagles took the deciding set 15-12.
The Golden Eagles took control of the first set by turning an early 3-2 deficit into an 11-3 advantage, winning nine straight points during Kalina Powell's service turn. The surge included a Cara Vandeborne-Emily Klopp block, a Haupt block, and two Haupt kills, while the Griffins also committed several attack errors. After the Griffins worked back from 11-3 to 12-9, the Golden Eagles answered with a Vandeborne-Karrick block, two Karrick kills and a Stader kill to move ahead 16-9. The Griffins again cut into the margin, but the Golden Eagles kept separation late with kills from Kearney, Haupt and Vandeborne before Haupt closed the 25-20 set win off a Marisa Markou assist.
The Golden Eagles broke open the second set early, turning a 1-0 deficit into a 6-1 lead and continuing to a 25-10 set win. Stader tied it with a kill from Claire Bickett, then Fjerstad served five straight Golden Eagles points, including an ace, while Kearney and Haupt combined on a block and Kearney added a kill. The Golden Eagles kept adding separation with kills from Klopp, Haupt and Vandeborne, a Powell ace and blocks involving Vandeborne, Haupt, Kearney and Klopp. Stader and Kearney supplied late kills, Karrick added a service ace, and the Golden Eagles reached set point at 24-9 before a Griffins service error closed the set.
In the third set, the Golden Eagles pushed the set to the final points after rallying from an 18-21 deficit to take a 22-21 lead, using a Griffins service error and three attack errors during Karrick's service turn. Earlier, Kearney and Haupt helped the Golden Eagles answer a 2-0 start by the Griffins, and Kearney later added kills that tied the set at 10-10 and put the Golden Eagles ahead 13-12. Klopp followed with back-to-back kills as the Golden Eagles moved in front 12-11, and Vandeborne and Karrick combined on a block to give the Golden Eagles a 15-14 edge. After the Golden Eagles' late 22-21 lead, the Griffins scored three straight points before Stader's kill kept the Golden Eagles within 24-23, but Emma Meurer closed the set with a kill for a 25-23 finish for the Griffins.
After a 2-0 start for the Griffins in the fourth set, the Golden Eagles moved in front early, using Griffins errors and kills by Klopp and Kearney off Karrick assists to take a 4-2 lead. Vandeborne then teamed with Haupt and Klopp on consecutive blocks that produced Griffins attack errors, and kills by Vandeborne, Haupt and Stader helped the Golden Eagles build an 11-6 advantage. The Griffins answered after the Golden Eagles led 12-8, with Courtney Smith serving back-to-back aces during a six-point run that put the Golden Eagles behind 14-12. The Golden Eagles got a Stader kill from Markou to stop that stretch and later added kills from Kearney, Klopp and Haupt to pull to 20-17, but the Griffins scored five of the final seven points to take the set 25-19.
Haupt led the Golden Eagles with 15 kills, 16 digs and 18.5 points, adding six total blocks. Kearney finished with 13 kills while hitting .360 and totaled 15 points. Karrick recorded 30 assists, five kills, four digs, two blocks and a service ace. Vandeborne added six kills and a team-high seven total blocks.
