ERIE, Pa. – It's a big week of action for the Gannon fall sports teams, while the winter programs are now in full swing as men's basketball takes to the hardcourt this weekend. Both soccer teams begin PSAC playoff action with the men's soccer team hosting the PSAC Final Four on Friday and the championship on Sunday.

The women's soccer team faces a difficult quarterfinal matchup with defending PSAC champion Shepherd on Tuesday. The volleyball team, having already clinched the top seed in the Western Division, wraps up regular season action with home matches on Friday and Saturday.

The winter sports showcase the women's basketball team hosting its second straight tournament with Charleston (WV), Davis & Elkins, and Slippery Rock visiting the Highmark Events Center for the Atlantic Region Challenge. Meanwhile, the men's squad tips off the campaign in the Bowie State Tip-Off Classic.

Below is the schedule for the week ahead, along with a quick preview of each team.

THIS WEEK IN GANNON ATHLETICS 

Volleyball (20-6)
Friday, Nov. 14 vs. Slippery Rock -- 7:00 p.m.  
Saturday, Nov. 15 vs. Clarion (Senior Day) -- 1:00 p.m. 

• Not including the 2020 COVID season, the Golden Knights reached 20 wins for the 16th straight season with a three-game win at Seton Hill on Friday. The next day, they tasted defeat for the first time in Western Division action at California (Pa.), ending an 11-game winning streak in conference play.         
• Head coach Matt Darling's squad concludes the regular season this weekend. Slippery Rock visits the Highmark Events Center on Friday night, and Saturday afternoon, the Golden Knights celebrate Senior Day against Clarion.
• The PSAC Tournament gets underway on Tuesday, November 18, with Gannon hosting a quarterfinal match. As the number one seed in the Western Division, they will play the fourth seed out of the East.
• The NCAA released its first set of regional rankings. The Golden Knights are among the ten teams listed in the alphabetical rankings for the Atlantic Region.

 
 
No. 9 Women's Soccer (15-1-2)
Tuesday, Nov. 11 vs. Shepherd (PSAC Quarterfinals)– 6:00 p.m
With a win on Tuesday, play Friday, Nov. 14, and Sunday, Nov. 16 at PSAC Final Four

• The Golden Knights battled high winds and the Clarion Golden Eagles to finish an impressive regular season last week. Jessie Watkins (Bowie, Md./Bowie) had a goal and an assist as Gannon handed Clarion a 3-0 defeat to improve to 15-1-2 entering the PSAC Tournament. The 15 wins are tied for the fourth-highest season total. Gannon enters this week ranked ninth in Division II and was second in last week's Atlantic Region poll.
• The postseason begins on Tuesday as Gannon hosts Shepherd in the revamped PSAC Tournament setup. Quarterfinal matches now pair up teams from the Eastern and Western Division. As the number two seed in the West, Gannon hosts defending PSAC champion Shepherd (8-1-6), the third seed in the East, in the quarterfinals.   
• Tuesday's winner moves on to play the Clarion-West Chester winner in the PSAC Final Four, with the semifinals on Friday and the championship match set for Sunday. The highest remaining Eastern Division seed will host the Final Four unless all East teams are eliminated. 

No. 16 Men's Soccer (10-2-4)
Hosting PSAC Final Friday, Nov. 14 vs. West Chester – 2:00 p.m. 

• The Gannon men's soccer team is flying high entering the PSAC Tournament. The Golden Knights have run off seven straight wins and have outscored the opposition 36-4 in that stretch. In fact, Gannon leads Division II with 57 goals.
• As the number one seed in the Western Division the Golden Knights will host the PSAC Final Four with the semifinals on Friday and the championship match on Sunday. Head coach Billy Colton's team will face Monday's quarterfinal match winner between West Chester (E2) and Lock Haven (W3). Gannon is currently ranked sixth in Super Region 1 in the second set of NCAA regional rankings and 16th nationally.
• Gannon wrapped up the regular season last Thursday with a dominating 8-0 win over California (Pa.), the third straight game with seven-or-more goals. Enzo Rekka (Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina/Gymnasium of the Catholic School Centre "Sveti Franjo") had two goals and three assists while Rafa Hyde (São José dos Campos, Brazil/) added a pair of goals and an assist. 

Football (1-9)
Saturday, Nov. 15 at Lock Haven – 1:00 p.m.  

• With just under 12 minutes to play the potential for overtime was apparent after Gannon tied California (Pa.) at 21-21. It was not to be, however, as the Vulcans took the lead just 28 seconds later and went on to a 41-21 victory.     
• The 2025 campaign comes to an end on Saturday as the Golden Knights play a PSAC crossover game at Lock Haven.   
• Despite Saturday's losses there were a number of bright spots. Most notable, James Faulkner (West Bloomfield Township, Mich./West Bloomfield) set the season record for receptions by a tight end, boosting his total to 40 catches.   

Cross Country
Saturday, Nov. 22 at NCAA Div. II National Championships, Kenosha, Wisc.

• Emily Bowers (Silver Creek, N.Y./Silver Creek) is headed to Wisconsin! The sophomore became Gannon's first-ever women's runner to qualify for the NCAA Div. II National Championships on Saturday. She joins Joseph Westrick and Ryan Garich as Gannon harriers to reach the national championships. 
• Bowers followed up a championship showing in the PSAC Championships with a second-place finish at the NCAA Div. Atlantic Region Championships on Saturday in Lock Haven. She posted a time of 21:22.5 over the 6K course, just shy of Glenville State's Natalie Barr's time 21:22.0. 
• Alexis Abbett (Aspinwall, Pa./Aquinas Academy) joined Bowers as an All-Region performer. Also a sophomore, she placed 17th (22:00.00). Gannon finished 12th out of 23 teams. 
• The men's cross country team finished in 15th place at the regional championships. Luke Malena (Medina, Ohio/Cloverleaf) turned in a strong showing, narrowly missing All-Region honors. Malena came in 27th covering the 10K course in a time of 32:01.2.

Men's Water Polo (13-9)
Hosts WWPA Championships on Friday, Nov. 21 to Sunday, Nov, 23 at SPIRE Institute, Geneva, Ohio

• Gannon concluded the regular season on Sunday with a 19-17 win at Penn State Behrend to remain undefeated all-time vs. the Lions. Head coach Zarko Sadikovic employed four goalkeepers while Alexandros Kotskar supplied the offense. Already the career record-holder for goals and points, the senior totaled eight goals and an assist. Nikiforos Liantziris added four goals and three assists. 
• The Golden Knights return to the pool on Friday, Nov. 21 hosting the WWPA Championships. The three-day event will be held at the SPIRE Institute in Geneva, Ohio. Gannon enters as the number one seed in the East Region.

No. 5 Women's Basketball
Hosts the Atlantic Regional Challenge Saturday, Nov. 15 to Sunday, Nov. 16
Saturday vs. Davis & Elkins – 6:00 p.m.
Sunday vs. Charleston (WV) – 4:00 p.m.  
 

• In most instances head coach Cleve Wright wouldn't be satisfied with two wins in three games. It's the nature of the program he has built at Gannon. But this past week it was acceptable to the veteran coach. The fifth-ranked Golden Knights hosted a powerful field in the D2 CCA Tip-Off Classic. They upset a pair of top five teams while losing to Northern Michigan. 
• The tournament began with a 66-51 upset of No. Union (Tenn.), a team that reached the national semifinals a year ago. Bri Claxon (South Webster, Ohio/South Webster) led the way with 20 points while Maddy Wheatley (Canberra, Australia/UCSSC Lake Ginninderra) added 12 points and 10 rebounds.
• Gannon fell victim to its own upset on Saturday as Northern Michigan, another 2025 NCAA Tournament team, handed the Golden Knights a 60-58 defeat. After trailing much of the game a potential tying shot fell off the rim as time expired.
• Wright's squad came back on Sunday with an impressive 70-55 victory over No. 4 North Georgia behind 23 points from Claxon and 13 from Ratliff. North Georgia reached the Sweet 16 last year.
• Gannon hosts another tournament this weekend hosting the Atlantic Region Challenge. The Golden Knights host Davis & Elkins on Saturday and Charleston (WV) on Sunday.

Swimming
Does not compete this week

• The Golden Knights faced Case Western Reserve in a dual meet this past week. While both teams fell to the Spartans there were a number of impressive showings in the pool.
• The men's team, now 2-1, saw Kuba Loboda (Lublin, Poland) break the CWRU pool record in eth 100-yard butterfly with a time of 47.81, breaking his won record.           
• On the women's side, Mariia Melnyk (Kyiv, Ukraine/Education Center Optima) set a school record in the 100-yard freestyle with her time of 50.80 also an NCAA B cut time. The freshman from the Ukraine also won the 100-yard backstroke and was part of the winning 400-yard medley relay team that set a school record (3:53.87). She was joined by Juliana Romero (Bogotá, Columbia/Colegio pureza de Maria), Maria Valcheva (Sofia, Bulgaria/Sports School Vasil Levski), and Hailey Wills (Cleves, Ohio/Seton).
• The Golden Knights return to action one last time this semester, swimming in the Malone Invitational on Nov. 20-22.

No. 10 Men's Wrestling
Does not compete this week  

• The Gannon men's wrestling team took home first place in the Bob Del Rosa Ohio Open on Sunday, hosted by Case Western Reserve. Ten wrestlers earned medals including four who finished first in their respective weight classes.  
• Logan Sallot (Erie, PA/McDowell High School) (125 lbs.), Grant MacKay (New Castle, Pa./Laurel) (165), Patrick Jackson (Harpers Ferry, WV/Spring Mills High) (184), and Joey Lyons (Wooster, Ohio/Wooster) (197) all claimed first-place finishes. Each of them also won the previous week at the Mount Union Invitational. Connor Saylor (Hermitage, Pa./Hickory) was second at 149 lbs. with Caleb Butterfield (Erie, Pa./McDowell) third at 157 lbs.
• Gannon returns to action on Nov. 23, competing in the Fairmont State Quad. 

Women's Wrestling
Thursday, Nov. 13 vs. D'Youville – 7:00 p.m.

• Gannon women's wrestling fans will have an opportunity to get their first look at home when the Golden Knights host D'Youville on Thursday. The match will take place at 7:00 p.m. at the Highmark Events Center.
• Head coach Erin Vandiver's team had a busy and successful weekend in Michigan. Gannon competed in the Adrian Duals on Saturday, then wrestled in the Adrian Invite the next day. The 21st-ranked Golden Knights finished with a 2-2 record while facing three nationally-ranked teams in the duals portion of the weekend. They beat the two teams tied for 18th in the national rankings, 32-15 over Tiffin and 29-15 over Adrian. Gannon's losses came to second-ranked McKendree and Sacred Heart.
• On Sunday six Golden Knights placed at the Adrian Invite. Leyna Rumpler (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) took home first place in the 160 lbs. B class, with Rose Cassioppi (Roscoe, Ill./Hononegah) was sixth in the 160 lbs. A group.  Jada Badayos-Chaves (Odenton, Md./Arundel High) was fifth in the 103 lbs. A weight class with Bella Phillips (Bellingham, Wash./Squalicum High School) adding a fifth-place showing at 180 lbs. A.  Two wrestlers took home eighth-place medals – Isabella McNutt (Allison Park, PA/Hampton Township) at 117 B and Lili Ujfalvi (Kecskemet-heteny, Hungary/Bolyai Janos Secondary School) at 138 A. 

No. 22 Men's Basketball
Friday, Nov. 14 at Bowie State Tip-Off Classic vs. Bowie State – 7:00 p.m. 
Saturday, Nov. 15 at Bowie State Tip-Off Classic vs. Fayetteville State – 1:00 p.m. 

• Gannon opens the 2025-26 season this weekend competing in the Bowie State Tip-Off Classic. The Golden Knights face host Bowie State on Friday night and return to the court on Saturday to play Fayetteville State. Bowie State was 16-14 last year while Fayetteville State was 23-9 and reached the semifinals of the Atlantic Regional.
• Head coach Easton Bazzoli enters his second season in charge of the Golden Knights. Gannon was chosen the PSAC West preseason favorite and is ranked 22nd in the NABC Div. II Preseason Poll after finishing 27-7 last year and reaching the Atlantic Regional championship game.