ERIE, Pa. – This wasn't the ending that the Gannon volleyball team wanted or the outcome that the GU program has experienced so many times in past Atlantic Regionals.

Indiana (Pa.) rallied from a 2-1 deficit to claim a five-set victory over Gannon in the Atlantic Regional semifinals on Friday night at the Highmark Events Center, ending the Golden Knights' 2023 season.

In 2022, the Golden Knights hosted the PSAC Tournament and Atlantic Regional and won both titles on the way to advancing to the Elite Eight in Seattle.

Gannon repeated as PSAC champion this season and again earned the right to host the regional. However, Gannon, which swept West Liberty on Thursday, could not close out a tough IUP team after taking a 2-1 lead. The Crimson Hawks (23-10) claimed a 25-22, 21-25, 18-25, 25-19, 15-9 to earn a matchup with PSAC rival Clarion in Saturday's 7 p.m. title match.

The Golden Eagles swept Shaw in three sets one night after the Bears turned in one of the most memorable upsets in tourney history against No. 2-seeded Wheeling on Thursday.

Gannon's loss doesn't spoil an outstanding season that coach Matt Darling's team put together. The Golden Knights finished with a 27-5 record after winning the PSAC West regular-season title with a 14-2 mark.

The loss did, however, end Gannon's run of consecutive Atlantic Regional titles at three and halted Gannon's regional winning streak at 10 matches since 2019.
 

What happened:

The evening started unevenly for Gannon after the Golden Knights took leads of 6-0 and 8-2 in the first set before Indiana rallied for a 25-22 win, including the final four points.

Gannon claimed each of the next two sets by scores of 25-21 and 25-18, but IUP's serving and blocking was giving the Golden Knights problems, a sign of things to come.

IUP raced to a 21-11 lead in the fourth set before Gannon whittled the lead to 23-19. Indiana then clinched the set win with an ace.

In the deciding fifth set, Gannon led 5-4 before IUP ran off six consecutive points to take a 10-5 lead. Gannon closed the lead to 10-8, forcing a Crimson Hawks timeout, but IUP outscored Gannon 5-1 the rest of the way.

A kill by Stefania Anagnostou on match point secured the IUP victory and set off a joyous celebration on Gannon's home court.

 
By the numbers:

Junior right side hitter Hailey Koch (Littleton, Col./Dakota Ridge) was a force for Gannon, recording 20 kills on a .326 hitting percentage. Journey Blevins (Richwood, Ohio/North Union) added 13 kills.

Sophomore setter Bengisu Arslan (Ankara, Turkey/Private Çankaya Doga Anatolian) had a double-double with 28 assists and 12 digs.

Junior libero Emma Hall (Lowell, Mich./Lowell) paced Gannon with 19 digs. She finished the season with 612 digs. Hall ranks fourth in Gannon history with 1,810 career digs with one season to go.

Anagnostou led IUP with 16 kills, while Lauren Valentic had 12 kills and seven total blocks.