AMHERST, NY – After cruising through the first two sets, the Gannon University women's volleyball team had to work for a tough non-conference win on Tuesday evening.

The Golden Knights beat a strong Daemen University team 25-21, 25-15, 21-25, 27-25 at Charles L. & Gloria B. Lumsden Gymnasium.

"We expected a battle tonight, and we certainly were in one," Gannon coach Matt Darling said. "Daemen's offense started clicking and gave us trouble, but I'm really proud of the team for gutting out the win."

Gannon, which had played 10 consecutive PSAC West matches before Tuesday, improved to 16-5 on the season. Daemen, the first-place team in the East Coast Conference, dropped to 13-4 overall.

Both programs won NCAA Regionals in 2021 and advanced to the Division II Elite Eight. Gannon advanced one more round to the Final Four last season.

Junior outside hitter Madde Blake (Crystal Lake, Ill./Crystal Lake Central) led Gannon on Tuesday with 18 kills and 19 points, while sophomore outside hitter Sam Deinek (South Lyon, Mich./South Lyon East) added 16 kills and 18 points.

Freshman setter Bengisu Arslan (Ankara, Turkey) dished out 44 assists and had 11 digs for Gannon. Sophomore libero Emma Hall (Lowell, Mich./Lowell) tied her career high with 35 digs, while Blake had 12 digs.

The Gannon blocking game was in top form as well. Sophomore right side Hailey Koch (Littleton, Col./Dakota Ridge) had a match-high seven total blocks, including five solo blocks, and senior middle blocker Sophia Glabus (Elmhurst, Ill./York) added five total blocks.

Gannon will return to PSAC West action this weekend. The Golden Knights will host Mercyhurst on Friday at 7 p.m. and Edinboro on Saturday at 2 p.m.