CALIFORNIA (Nov. 8) – Behind a third-straight kill/dig double-double by senior Laurel Miller (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park), the California University of Pennsylvania volleyball team closed the regular season with a 3-0 victory (25-19, 25-19, 25-15) over Mercyhurst in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West action Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center.

With the win, the Vulcans improve to 25-8 overall and 17-5 in conference action. Cal U finished in a tie for third in the PSAC West standings and earned the fourth seed for next week's league tournament. Meanwhile, the Lakers finished the season with an 18-12 overall record behind a 13-9 mark in league play.

Miller recorded a game-high 12 kills while hitting at a .235 clip and added 12 digs for her 16th kill/dig double-double of the season. Freshman Ashley Leto (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) and junior Miranda Fouzie (Kingston, Ontario/Sydenham) each totaled six kills, while junior Mary Lavery (La Plata, Md./La Plata) added five kills. Sophomore Megan Litoborski (Lemont, Ill./Lemont) dished out a team-high 20 assists and classmate Kristen Scurpa (Sharpsville, Pa./Sharpsville) tallied 11 assists.

Defensively, the Vulcans were paced by a team-high 12 digs from Miller. Junior Samantha Rudy (Greencastle, Pa./Greencastle-Antrim) totaled nine digs, while Leto and Litoborski posted eight and six digs, respectively. Fouzie, Lavery and sophomore Danielle Hayes (Erie, Pa./McDowell) each totaled three block assists in the win.

In the first set, Cal U raced out to a 5-2 lead on consecutive points by Litoborski before Mercyhurst won four of the next six points to close the gap to 7-6. Tied at 12-12, the Vulcans responded by winning nine of the next 15 points after a kill by redshirt freshman Rachel Snyder (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley). Cal U took a 25-19 victory in the first set win after winning four of the final five points.

Early in the second set, the two teams split the opening 12 points before Cal U went on a 6-2 run prior to taking a timeout. After a kill by Fouzie gave the Vulcans a 17-13 lead, Cal U closed out the set by winning eight of the final 14 points to post another 25-19 victory.

The Vulcans jumped out to a fast 10-3 lead in the third set off a kill by Hayes. Mercyhurst cut the Cal U lead to three after winning eight of 12 points. The Vulcans completed the sweep with an 11-4 run to close out the third set after posting a .320 hitting percentage in the 25-15 victory.

Cal U will open play in the PSAC Tournament on Tuesday, Nov. 11, when it travels to face Clarion in the quarterfinals at 7 p.m.