Deamen Celebration
Bryce Dolak
2
Daemen Daemen 16-5,6-0 ECC
3
Winner Gannon Gannon 16-3,7-1 PSAC
Daemen Daemen
16-5,6-0 ECC
2
Final
3
Gannon Gannon
16-3,7-1 PSAC
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 5 F
Daemen Daemen 25 26 19 16 15 (2)
Gannon Gannon 22 24 25 25 17 (3)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball | | Bob Shreve, Assistant Director of Athletics Media Relations

Golden Knights Host Block Party in Five-Set Win over Daemen

ERIE, Pa. – Wednesday night's victory over Daemen at the Highmark Events Center left Gannon volleyball head coach Matt Darling somewhat exasperated. The veteran coach has high expectations for a talented squad and he's still waiting to see it all come together.

That being said, his Golden Knights rallied from a 2-0 deficit for the fourth time this year to defeat a Daemen team that came into the match with a 16-4 record and won the East Coast Conference and earned a berth in the NCAA Div. II East Regional a year ago.

Gannon prevailed 3-2 by scores of 22-25, 24-26, 25-19, 25-16, and 17-15. The Golden Knights have now won all five matches that have gone five games this year, improving to 16-3 overall.

The Golden Knights literally blocked their way to the victory as the front line dominated play over the final three games. Gannon totaled 18 blocks compared to eight for the Wildcats. In addition, the attack came alive, particularly Journey Blevins (Richwood, Ohio/North Union), the team's leader in kills. The junior outside hitter overcame a slow start to finish with a match-high 18 kills, adding nine digs. Hailey Koch (Littleton, Col./Dakota Ridge) was also in double figures with 11 kills plus three block solos. Ali Sorenson (Tinley Park, Ill./Lincoln Way East) had nine kills, four block solos and a block assist.

 
Marta Roicka (Warsaw, Poland/North Central Texas Academy) not only led Gannon with 40 assists but was a huge factor up front, finishing with three block solos and three block assists. Freshman middle blocker Lauren Atwell (Mars, Pa./Mars Area) added three block solos and two block assists. Emma Hall (Lowell, Mich./Lowell), who went over 1,500 career digs last week, added 26 to her total, while Madde Blake (Crystal Lake, Ill./Crystal Lake Central) had 25 digs and nine kills.

After the first two games it looked like it would be a short night for the Golden Knights. Gannon jumped out to a 13-7 lead midway through game one, but an 8-0 run by the Wildcats gave Daemen its first lead of the night. Gannon would never lead again as Daemen hit .355 for a 25-22 win, whilke Gannon hit .133.

The second game a back-and-forth affair with six ties and five lead changes. Gannon again took any early lead but the found itself trailing 19-12. The Golden Knights would pull ahead at 24-23 on a Blevins' kill, but Daemen went up 2-0 with the next three points for a 26-24 win. It was during the second game though that the front line started to make a difference.

Blevins came alive in the third game with six kills, and even though the Golden Knights had a .171 hitting percentage, they held Daemen to .098. They also totaled four blocks in the 25-19 win that saw Daemen lead just once, that at 1-0.     

The block party really got going in set number four. Sorenson had four block solos and Koch two as Gannon totaled nine blocks to send the match into a fifth set with a 25-16 win. Gannon trailed 12-9 before outscoring the Wildcats 16-4 the rest of the way. Koch also contributed five kills.

Now came Gannon's specialty – the fifth set. The Golden Knights seemed on the verge of blowing out the Wildcats, jumping out to a 10-2 lead. Daemen rallied but Gannon still needed just one point to end the match, leading 14-11. Back came the Wildcats with the next three points and the match was tied at 14-14. A service error gave Gannon a 15-14 lead, but Daemen tied it at 15-15. Blevins' kill gave Gannon the lead for good at 16-15, and the match ended with a 17-15 win on a hitting error.

Darling's team will have little time to enjoy the non-conference win as they are in the midst of a stretch of three games in four days. The Golden Knights host Slippery Rock on Friday, October 20 at 7:00 p.m., then have the second showdown of the season with Clarion on Saturday, October 21. The Golden Eagles host Gannon at 1:00 p.m. They claimed the first meeting 3-1 on September 23.    
 
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