Hoboken, NJ - With an incredible run from the service line that included 15 aces in just three sets, the Clarkson University Volleyball team won its nation-best 35th match of the season with a three-set sweep of Hunter College (25-17, 25-19, 25-23) in the opening round of the Hoboken Regional held on the campus of Stevens Institute of Technology.

The Golden Knights, ranked 15th in the latest AVCA Poll, improved to 35-3 overall and won their 63rd straight match against New York Region opponents, the longest run since New York University scored 90 straight victories against New York Region teams from 2003-2007. Clarkson, the top seed in the region, will take on fifth-seeded Tufts University at 3:30 pm on Saturday. The Jumbos handily swept Springfield College in three sets to open the day in Hoboken.

"I am very happy to see our resilience and fight in that match (today)," head coach Johan Dulfer said. "Hunter is a scrappy team and they do a great job making you work hard for every point. I really liked their mentality. Once we figured out how to match that I thought we played much better and we can be proud to be moving a stop closer to our goal."

Clarkson came out slow in each of the three sets, but as has become the pattern for the Golden Knights they quickly found their groove offensively and were able to use strong runs from the service line and on attack to put the opponent away. In the first set, the Knights trailed by four (11-7), forcing head coach Johan Dulfer to take a timeout. The break proved valuable as Clarkson scored 11 of the next 13 points, with five coming on aces, including three from Victoria Kirkemo (Englewood, CO), one from Sierra Rhoades (Poway, CA) and one from Adrienne Walker (Centennial, CO). That run proved enough as the Knights finished with seven aces in the opening set as Hannah Jones (Lake Arrowhead, CA) also chipped in two more aces.

In the second set, Clarkson trailed by one point (7-6), but scored five straight points, bookended by a pair of Kirkemo kills and a Rhoades aces in the middle. The third set ended up being the biggest challenge for the Knights as Clarkson fell behind by seven points (17-10) to a team that had a raucous crowd on hand from just down the road in New York City. The momentum was halted at the seven-point edge, however, as an Aishvina Arasu (Brea, CA) kill began a six-point run that pulled Clarkson within striking distance. The game was tied up just a few points later, though a service error saw the set tied up 23-23. Danielle Farabee (Katy, TX) scored a kill to give Clarkson a one-point advantage and with Jones serving, the defensive line received the attempt into the net to end the match.

Clarkson outscored Hunter 64-31 in points and the Knights were devastating from the service line with 15 aces. Hannah Jones had six of those serves, while Kirkemo added four more to her nation-leading total. Kirkemo also had a team-best 11 kills and provided six digs, while Aishvina Arasu and Lauren Hutchinson (Spring, TX) each recorded nine kills, with Hutchinson hitting at a .381 clip. Adrienne Walker also chipped in seven kills in the middle. Kirstie Shurie (LaCanada, CA) hit .800 (4-0-5) and produced 43 assists, her highest total in a three-set match this season. Freshman Evanne Jimenez (Ventura, CA) also had a team-best 11 digs.