CALIFORNIA, Pa. – After a narrow win in set one, Gannon took control in sets two and three to earn a 3-0 sweep over homestanding California University of Pennsylvania (26-24, 25-11, 25-17) on Friday evening at the Convocation Center. The win boosts Gannon's record to 17-4 overall and 5-2 in the PSAC West.
 
In set one, Gannon faced several four-point deficits and trailed by as many as five points late in the set (20-15) before an Ashley Kerestes (Loves Park, Ill./Rockford Lutheran) kills began a 9-1 scoring run for the Golden Knights that made the score 24-21 in favor of Gannon. Valeria Torres (Gurabo, Puerto Rico/Notre Dame) scored three points during her serve and Ashley Beyers (Lanark, Ill./Eastland) served six consecutive points to aide Gannon during the stretch. GU had three aces and three blocks during the nine-point stretch.
 
"I give my team high marks for the way they battled back from a sluggish start, not to mention a significant deficit, in the first set," said GU head volleyball coach Matt Darling. "In particular, I thought Maggie (Greenfield) and Lauren (Sampson) found another level after the first set.  We needed a good team effort tonight, and I am really happy about the win."
 
Cal U got the score back to 24-24 late in the first set, but a Vulcan service error and a Sam Deinek (South Lyon, Mich./South Lyon East) kill helped Gannon close out the set to give the Knights a 1-0 advantage in the match.
 
Gannon carried its momentum into the next two sets with 13 kills and just one error in set two, and 11 kills and only two errors in set three as the Golden Knights earned their 15^th sweep of the season. Cal U hit just .065 with 22 errors in the setback.
 
Statistically, Gannon held a commanding 9-2 advantage in service aces, while Cal U edged the Golden Knights in blocks by a 6-5 margin.
 
Lauren Sampson (Hilliard, Ohio/Hilliard Davidson) led Gannon in the victory with 11 kills, four aces and two block assists. Ashley McClung (Charleston, W.Va./George Washington) chipped in nine kills and two blocks. Maggie Greenfield (Woodstock, Ontario/Woodstock Collegiate Institute) also had a strong performance for GU around the net with seven kills and a team-high four blocks.
 
Deinek and Ashley Beyers (Lanark, Ill./Eastland) each tallied 12 digs apiece for Gannon, while Katie Becht (Lancaster, N.Y./Lancaster) added nine from her libero position. Beyers also passed out 25 assists from her setter position to guide the Gannon offensive attack.
 
In addition to four aces from Sampson, the Golden Knights also got three aces from Beyers and two from Torres.
 
Cal U (9-7, 4-3 PSAC West) got eight kills and 12 digs from Sarah Moehring.
 
The Golden Knights will continue PSAC West play on Saturday with a 1 p.m. match at Slippery Rock.