Clarion Athletics

WHEELING, W.Va. --- The Golden Eagles volleyball team earned their second split in as many days at the Atlantic Region Crossover, beating West Virginia State 3-2 (25-8, 22-25, 25-19, 23-25, 15-12) before falling 3-2 (25-19, 25-10, 16-25, 19-25, 6-15) to Wheeling in the nightcap. Clarion finished the event with a 2-2 record.
 
Clarion 3, West Virginia State 2

RECAP: In the climactic fifth set, the Golden Eagles answered the Yellow Jackets' opening point with a Marisa Markou kill, then created early separation with Taylor Haupt serving, scoring four straight points from 1-1 to 5-1 behind an Anne Wadle kill and three opponent attack errors. The Golden Eagles kept adding pressure in the middle of the set, with Raegan Stader and Emily Klopp putting down kills and Emily Klopp and Finley Kearney combining on blocks as the Golden Eagles moved ahead 10-4 and later 12-5.
 
The Yellow Jackets worked back late, trimming the Golden Eagles' advantage to 13-12 after a run that included three straight blocks against the Golden Eagles. Clarion reached set point on a Yellow Jackets service error, and Markou followed with a service ace to finish a 15-12 fifth-set win.
 
The Golden Eagles broke open the first set with an 8-0 run from 8-3 to 16-3, then kept the Yellow Jackets from mounting a sustained response in a 25-8 win. Earlier, Anne Wadle had two kills during a 5-0 opening burst that also included back-to-back Taylor Haupt service aces. After the Yellow Jackets moved the score to 8-3, Finley Kearney delivered a kill to return control to the Golden Eagles, and Lauren Fjerstad served seven straight points with kills from Kearney, Haupt and Emily Klopp helping stretch the margin. The Golden Eagles continued to add points through their attack and serve late, getting a Marisa Markou ace, a Julia Rodriguez kill, and the set-closing Kearney kill from Markou.
 
The Golden Eagles cut into multiple Yellow Jackets leads in the second set, including a late push from 24-18 to 24-22 before the Yellow Jackets finished the set, 25-22. Earlier, Anne Wadle opened the set with a kill, and the Golden Eagles answered an 11-6 deficit with kills from Emily Klopp, Taylor Haupt and Raegan Stader before a Finley Kearney-Emily Klopp block helped trim the margin to 15-13. The Yellow Jackets responded with five straight points to move ahead 20-13, but the Golden Eagles came back again with a Taylor Haupt-Finley Kearney block and two Klopp kills during a stretch that brought the score to 21-18. Haupt added two late kills, including one during the Golden Eagles' final four-point run with Marisa Markou serving, before the Yellow Jackets closed the set on Milena Jansson's kill.
 
The Golden Eagles controlled the third set from the opening stretch and finished it off 25-19, getting three service aces from Lauren Fjerstad and late kills from Cara Vandeborne and Taylor Haupt. Anne Wadle scored the first point on a kill from Kalina Powell, and Raegan Stader followed with two early kills as the Golden Eagles moved ahead 3-1. Fjerstad's first service turn helped widen the set to 8-3, with an ace and a Finley Kearney-Emily Klopp block combining with Yellow Jackets errors. After the Yellow Jackets cut the margin to 15-11, Wadle answered with a kill from Marisa Markou, and the Golden Eagles later used a Kearney kill from Natalie Karrick plus back-to-back Fjerstad aces to reach 21-13. The visitors got back to 22-18, but Vandeborne and Haupt delivered kills in the final stretch before Haupt's kill from Markou ended the set.
 
The Golden Eagles pushed the fourth set to the final points but dropped a 25-23 decision after the Yellow Jackets scored the last three points. Earlier, the Golden Eagles started quickly with four straight points on Marisa Markou's serve, including kills by Vandeborne and Taylor Haupt and a Markou ace. After the Golden Eagles led 14-11 on Kalina Powell's service ace, the Yellow Jackets answered with six straight points before the Golden Eagles came back to tie it at 17-17 on a block by Anne Wadle and Vandeborne. Emily Klopp helped the Golden Eagles respond again late, putting down kills for 22-21 and 23-22 leads, but the Yellow Jackets closed the set with a bad set and two blocks to finish it.
 
Kalina Powell recorded 30 digs and added five assists. Raegan Stader led the Golden Eagles with 12 kills and added two total blocks. Taylor Haupt finished with 10 kills, 11 digs and three service aces. Emily Klopp tallied nine kills and matched Finley Kearney with seven total blocks.
 
Wheeling 3, Clarion 2

RECAP: Clarion claimed the first set 25-19, getting seven kills from Raegan Stader and five from Taylor Haupt while Anne Wadle put away the final point from Marisa Markou. Earlier, Clarion answered the Cardinals' early points with kills from Haupt and Stader, then Natalie Karrick served an ace to tie the set at 4-4 before a Cardinals attack error moved Clarion ahead 5-4. After the teams traded points through the middle of the set, the Golden Eagles created separation from 13-11 to 16-11 behind a Karrick ace, a Stader kill from Kalina Powell, and another Cardinals attack error. Finley Kearney and Emily Klopp added kills as Clarion stretched the margin to 18-12, and Haupt delivered three kills after that point before Stader brought the Golden Eagles to set point at 24-17. The Cardinals scored the next two points, but Wadle's kill closed the set for Clarion.
 
The Golden Eagles took control of the second set with an early 8-0 surge, turning a 2-1 edge into a 10-1 lead behind Taylor Haupt's serving, kills from Cara Vandeborne and Anne Wadle, two Haupt aces, and repeated blocks from Vandeborne and Wadle. Clarion kept answering Cardinals sideouts through the middle of the set, with Raegan Stader, Finley Kearney, and Emily Klopp each putting away kills to keep the margin in double digits. From 14-7, the Golden Eagles won seven of the next eight rallies, using a Marisa Markou ace, a Taylor Haupt kill, a Stader kill, and several Cardinals errors to move ahead 21-8. Stader added kills for Clarion's 23rd and 24th points before Kearney closed the set with a Markou-assisted kill for a 25-10 win.
 
Clarion never recovered from the Cardinals' early separation in the third set, falling behind 7-1 before working to stabilize the set. Vandeborne and Anne Wadle gave the Golden Eagles early offense, while blocks involving Vandeborne, Wadle, Finley Kearney, and Raegan Stader helped produce points as the Cardinals continued to hold the margin. Clarion's most sustained late response came after trailing 20-11, when Kearney put down consecutive kills and Taylor Haupt added a kill during a stretch that brought the Golden Eagles within 21-16. The Cardinals answered with the final four points to close the set, 25-16.
 
The Golden Eagles were in position midway through the fourth set, leading 9-7 after an Emily Klopp kill and a Cardinals attack error, but the Cardinals answered with six straight points to move ahead 13-9 and Clarion could not get back level in a 25-19 set loss. Earlier, Vandeborne had two kills and Taylor Haupt, Raegan Stader, Finley Kearney, and Klopp added kills as the Golden Eagles traded points with the Cardinals and built two-point leads at 7-5 and 9-7. After the Cardinals run, Clarion got points on a service error, a bad set, and a Stader kill to reach 15-12, but a service error and two attack errors helped the Cardinals push the margin to 18-12. Klopp later put down two kills with assists from Kylie Barto, and the Golden Eagles scored three straight from 24-16 on kills by Haupt, Anne Wadle, and Haupt before Camryn Matus closed the set for the Cardinals.
 
Clarion could not recover after the Cardinals turned a 4-2 set into an 8-2 advantage during the fifth set, with three Golden Eagles attack errors contributing to that stretch. Earlier, Emily Klopp accounted for Clarion's first two points on kills, including one from Kylie Barto that kept the set at 3-2. Taylor Haupt answered twice later, first with a kill from Barto at 8-3 and then from Marisa Markou at 11-4, but the Cardinals continued to build separation. Anne Wadle and Raegan Stader added consecutive late kills, with Stader's coming from Markou, before the Cardinals closed the set 15-6.
 
Taylor Haupt finished with 14 kills, 10 digs, two service aces, and a team-high 16 points. Raegan Stader led Clarion with 15 kills and added three digs. Kalina Powell recorded a team-high 19 digs. Anne Wadle tallied seven kills and five total blocks.
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