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16th-ranked Knights volleyball sweeps Utica and Plattsburgh to improve to 25-3

Posted 10/18/14

Potsdam, NY - Senior Day was celebrated by the Clarkson University Volleyball team in its usual fashion on Saturday: with the Golden Knights coming away with a pair of victories. Fourth-year …

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16th-ranked Knights volleyball sweeps Utica and Plattsburgh to improve to 25-3

Posted

Potsdam, NY - Senior Day was celebrated by the Clarkson University Volleyball team in its usual fashion on Saturday: with the Golden Knights coming away with a pair of victories. Fourth-year student-athletes Brooke Butkovsky (Monroe, CT), Kristen Orlandini (Fairport, NY) and Adrienne Walker (Centennial, CO) will likely play again on their home floor, but Saturday marked their final regular-season games and the trio made the most of the day with a pair of sweeps over Utica College and Plattsburgh State at Alumni Gymnasium.

The Golden Knights, ranked 16th in the latest AVCA Poll, improved to 25-3 overall with their fourth and fifth straight wins, while Utica fell to 8-19 on the season and the Cardinals slipped to 5-14.

"I thought we accomplished a lot of things this weekend," head coach Johan Dulfer said. "Our level will have to increase but our goal coming into the weekend was to help define what playing with purpose really means to us. I thought we improved in this area and I saw examples for different players in all three matches this weekend. I hope that means we're ready for important league matches next weekend."

Clarkson was its own worst enemy against the Pioneers, though the team was able to deliver enough kills and aces to cruise to a three-set win, 25-11, 25-15, 25-10. In the first set, though the Knights won by a healthy margin of 14 points, Clarkson gave away six points on assorted hitting errors and service errors, and that rate got worse in the second set as the Green and Gold had 11 errors. Clarkson righted the ship in set number three, getting enough of an advantage in the early going (beginning the game on an 8-0 run with Hannah Jones (Lake Arrowhead, CA) serving), and finished things off by battering the Pioneers with a .407 hitting percentage.

Victoria Kirkemo (Englewood, CO) hit .500 in the match with 13 kills and just two errors in 22 swings, and she also added in five more aces to her season total. Aishvina Arasu (Brea, CA) also produced a .500 hitting clip with nine kills and only two errors on just 14 swings, while Adrienne Walker scored six kills in just two sets, hitting .385. Lauren Hutchinson (Spring, TX) had the setting duties, and recorded 34 assists. Evanne Jimenez (Ventura, CA) led the defense with 15 digs. The entire roster minus ailing Kirstie Shurie (LaCanada, CA) saw time in the match.

Brandi Blaszak led Utica with four kills and Lora Allen had seven assists and six digs. Briona Enny produced a team-best eight digs.

Clarkson closed out the Golden Knights Invitational by honoring its three seniors in Brooke Butkovsky, Kristen Orlandini and Adrienne Walker. The outcome was rarely in doubt as the Golden Knights jumped out to leads in each of the three sets and, despite some hiccups, dominated from the service line. The Knights kept Plattsburgh off balance with their service game, recording 12 aces in the three-set tilt, with Victoria Kirkemo and Evanne Jimenez combining for nine.

Plattsburgh committed eight hitting errors in the first set, allowing Clarkson's offense some resting time, but the Knights woke up in the final two sets, averaging 15.5 kills per set and hitting .260.

Kirkemo had 11 kills, 10 digs, and five aces in the match, while Walker blasted the Cardinals with a .562 hitting percentage on nine kills and no errors in 16 swings. Aishvina Arasu also contributed 10 kills and five digs on offense. Lauren Hutchinson delivered 36 assists, six digs and a pair of blocks, and Evanne Jimenez added to her four aces with a match-high 17 digs.

For the Cardinals, Maggie Schrantz and Miranda Sheffer each had six kills and Meghan Clifford produced 14 assists, nine digs and a pair of blocks.