CLARION, Pa. — In a tight match with postseason implications for both teams, Clarion (18-8, 9-4 PSAC) defeated Seton Hill (13-10, 6-7 PSAC) by a match score of 3-2 (25-21, 25-19, 8-25, 20-25, 15-12) on Friday at Waldo S. Tippin Gymnasium. The Golden Eagles won the first two sets and then took the fifth 15-12 after the Griffins forced a deciding set with wins in the third and fourth.
Though the Golden Eagles and Griffins had both already clinched their spots in the upcoming PSAC Tournament, the match held importance for both teams in that tournament and beyond. With the win, Clarion clinched the third seed in the tournament, earning them a bye to the quarterfinal round on Wednesday evening. Clarion will travel to either Lock Haven or Shepherd, dependent on Saturday's results.
Neither Clarion nor Seton Hill hit particularly well over the course of the match, but the outcome rode on which team got hot at the right time. The Golden Eagles got one such run in the fifth set, after the Griffins dominated the third set and got the win in a tight fourth. The Golden Eagles answered each Griffins push in the opening stretch, getting kills from Finley Kearney and Taylor Haupt and blocks involving Emily Klopp, Cara Vandeborne and Natalie Karrick to move ahead 6-3. Raegan Stader added two kills as the Golden Eagles built the margin to 10-5, and Lauren Fjerstad's service ace later made it 12-7. The Griffins cut the gap to 12-10, but Haupt delivered two of the Golden Eagles' final three points on kills as the Golden Eagles closed out the set.
Stader led the Golden Eagles with 15 kills. Haupt added 14 kills, 19 digs and one ace. Kalina Powell recorded 22 digs and added two service aces, while Fjerstad recorded five service aces and 12 digs.
In the first set, the Golden Eagles answered a 21-21 tie by scoring the final four points, with Haupt putting the Golden Eagles back in front before Vandeborne and Karrick combined on a block. Haupt added another kill and Karrick finished the set from Marisa Markou. Earlier, the Golden Eagles opened with a block by Kearney and Klopp and built several narrow edges, including a 10-8 lead after Fjerstad's service ace. Stader helped keep the Golden Eagles steady through the middle of the set with multiple kills, while Fjerstad added back-to-back aces to push the Golden Eagles ahead 19-17. The Griffins pulled even at 21-21 after consecutive Golden Eagles attack errors, but the Golden Eagles closed the set from there to take it 25-21.
The Golden Eagles closed the second set by scoring the final six points, turning a 19-19 tie into a 25-19 set win. Earlier, Karrick opened the set with a service ace and assisted a Stader kill for a 2-0 start, but the Griffins pushed ahead 17-15 later in the set. The Golden Eagles answered with a Kearney kill, a Stader kill and a block by Kearney and Klopp to move in front 18-17, then stayed even after the Griffins tied it at 19-19. A Griffins attack error put the Golden Eagles back ahead 20-19, and Powell served the final five points with two aces while Klopp added two kills and Vandeborne supplied another to finish the set.
The Griffins opened the third set with the first five points and kept the Golden Eagles playing from behind, building a 14-2 lead before Haupt put down the Golden Eagles' first kill off a Karrick assist. The Golden Eagles found scattered offense from there, though, and the Griffins closed the set with a Flohr kill for a 25-8 finish.
The Golden Eagles pushed the fourth set to a 20-20 tie before the Griffins scored the final five points to take the set 25-20. Earlier, the Golden Eagles opened with kills from Stader and Klopp, and Stader added another kill as the Golden Eagles built a 6-2 lead. After the Griffins moved ahead 8-7, the Golden Eagles answered with a stretch that included a Haupt service ace, a Stader kill from Markou and a Griffins error to move in front 11-8, then reached 12-9 on a service error. The Golden Eagles kept responding later with kills from Karrick, Kearney, Haupt and Klopp, tying the set at 17-17, 18-18 and 20-20, but the Griffins closed the set from there.
