ERIE, Pa. — The Golden Eagles volleyball team rallied from a 2-0 deficit to force a fifth set against Wayne State (Mich.), but Clarion could not complete the comeback in falling 3-2 (27-29, 21-25, 25-21, 25-21, 11-15) at the Gannon Invitational on Saturday.
The Golden Eagles turned a 7-6 deficit into an 11-8 lead in the third set, getting blocks from
Natalie Karrick and
Cara Vandeborne during the stretch before Haupt added a kill from Barto.
Kayden McKinney kept the Golden Eagles in front through the middle of the set with multiple kills, while Karrick added a service ace that made it 14-10. The Golden Eagles later moved ahead 20-15 after a Karrick kill and back-to-back Warriors errors, then answered again when McKinney put down kills for the 22nd and 23rd points. The Warriors cut the margin to 23-21, but
Taylor Haupt responded with a kill from Karrick before
Emily Klopp and Haupt combined on the final block to close the Golden Eagles' 25-21 set win.
The Golden Eagles broke the fourth set open by winning six consecutive rallies from 16-14 to 22-14, with
Lauren Fjerstad serving the final five points of that stretch and adding an ace before Karrick capped it with a kill. Earlier, the Warriors led 5-2, but the Golden Eagles answered with four straight points, including blocks involving McKinney,
Finley Kearney and Karrick, to go in front 6-5. After the set tightened again, Klopp and Haupt supplied middle-stage kills, and McKinney and Kearney added later kills to help the Golden Eagles get to 16-14 before the run began. The Warriors pushed back after the Golden Eagles reached 24-17, scoring four straight points, but Haupt ended the set with a kill from Powell for a 25-21 Golden Eagles win.
The Golden Eagles opened the fifth set with four straight points, but the Warriors answered and ultimately took the set 15-11. Kearney started the run with a kill from Karrick, Klopp added a kill, and two Warriors attack errors gave the Golden Eagles a 4-0 lead before the visitors tied it at 4-4. Kearney put the Golden Eagles back in front at 5-4, and Haupt later stopped a Warriors stretch with a kill to make it 7-6. After the Warriors moved ahead 12-9, Kearney added another kill and Fjerstad followed with a service ace to bring the Golden Eagles within 12-11. The Warriors scored the final three points to close out the 15-11 fifth set.
Haupt led the Golden Eagles with 17 points, recording 14 kills, 14 digs, three blocks and a service ace for a double-double. Powell collected a team-high 24 digs and added a service ace. Fjerstad served five aces and finished with 11 digs. Karrick posted a team-high 27 assists while adding seven kills, three aces and four blocks.
The Golden Eagles pushed the opening set beyond 25 points and tied it three times in extra points, but the Warriors scored the last two rallies to take the set 29-27. Earlier, Clarion erased a 4-2 deficit behind a Kearney kill, a McKinney kill from Karrick and Fjerstad's serving, including aces that tied the set at 5-5 and put the Golden Eagles ahead 7-5. Karrick later served back-to-back aces for a 16-13 lead, and
Taylor Haupt helped keep the Golden Eagles in front with kills that made it 18-16, 20-18 and 22-20. Karrick added late kills from
Kylie Barto to give the Golden Eagles 23-21 and 24-23 edges, and after the Warriors moved ahead in extras, McKinney and Haupt each answered with kills before the visitors closed the set.
The Golden Eagles' biggest response came after the Warriors built a 14-9 lead, with a Warriors attack error, a Haupt service ace and a McKinney kill from Barto pulling the Golden Eagles within 14-12. Earlier, Clarion answered early separation with McKinney and Kearney kills, a
Kalina Powell ace and an
Emily Klopp kill that helped trim the gap to 10-9. After the Warriors moved back ahead 19-15, the Golden Eagles again pushed back behind a McKinney kill, a block involving Kearney and
Claire Bickett, and a Fjerstad service ace to get within 19-18. Klopp added two late kills as the Golden Eagles stayed within 21-20, but the Warriors scored four of the final five points to take the set 25-21.
