ERIE, Pa. – The Mercyhurst volleyball team fell to Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) opponent Clarion Friday night. The Lakers fell in three sets scoring 25-27 in set one, 13-25 in set two, and 16-25 in set three. Mercyhurst slips to a 6-10 overall record while falling to a 1-4 PSAC record.
Mercyhurst was led by
Shelby Chesko who posted nine kills, and two solo blocks.
Tess Ganich followed closely recording eight kills and having one block assist.
Hannah Vuylsteke, had a pair of aces,
Alyssa Kling and
Katie Baird each contributed one.
Makayla Mollé and
Abby Rose led assists with 10 and eight respectively. Vuylsteke, Baird, and Mollé, all had five digs a piece.
Clarion was led by Taylor Braunagel who posted 11 kills, while Olivia Olson and Julia Holden each contributed seven. Lauryn Driscoll, Holden, and Braunnagel each had two aces a piece.
The Lakers jumped out to an early 4-1 lead in the first set, they would extend this lead to as high as five points when they led 14-9. Mercyhurst would retain this lead until Clarion's Driscoll knotted the action at 21-21. The Lakers would reassert their lead to 24-21, but were unable to hold off three straight Clarion points to deadlock the action a second time. Mercyhurst would take its last lead of the set when the team rose to 25-24 on a service error point. Clarion would respond with three unanswered points to seal their victory in set one.
Mercyhurst would lead by one point twice during the second set jumping to a 1-0 lead off an attack error and leading again 2-1 off a service error. This is the last time Mercyhurst would hold the lead as Clarion was able to play from the front. The Lakers knotted the action once more when they tied the set at 4-4. Clarion's lead grew to as much as eight points when they won the second set 25-13.
Clarion earned a 5-0 lead in the final set, which they held onto for the remainder of the game. The Lakers would come closest to taking the lead with then trailed 9-10.
The Lakers will play again tomorrow at 4 pm when they host Indiana (Pa.) in conference action at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center.
