CALIFORNIA (Oct. 21) – Behind a season high in blocks and one of its top hitting performances of the the year, the California (PA) volleyball team registered a 3-0 victory (25-19, 28-26, 25-15) over division-leading Clarion on Friday night in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West action at the Convocation Center.

With the win, the Vulcans improve to 11-9 overall with a 5-6 league record. Cal also earned its first victory in the series since 2018 and dealt Clarion its initial PSAC West loss this fall. Meanwhile, the Golden Eagles drop to 20-2 this season with a 10-1 mark in divisional play.

Freshman Elisa Rugiero (Vicenza, Italy/Farina Vicenza) paced the team with 12 kills while hitting at a staggering .417 clip. Sophomore Allie Droneberger (North Beach, Md./Northern) notched nine kills and registered an impressive .381 hitting percentage and senior Chelsea Howard (Atlanta, Ga./North Atlanta) tallied seven kills on a .357 clip. Sophomore Rachel Simon (Wheeling, W.Va./Wheeling Park) contributed a career-high 30 assists while directing the offense. Junior Alayja Floyd (Pickerington, Ohio/Pickerington Central) and sophomore Grace Dorcon (Berlin, Pa./Berlin Brothersvalley) both collected a pair of service aces in the victory.

Defensively, Floyd controlled the net with seven total blocks and Howard added a season-high six blocks. Senior Kelly Lynch (Broadview Heights, Ohio/Holy Name) led the team with 13 digs and Dorcon added eight digs on Friday night.

Clarion held a slight 5-4 lead in the first set until the Vulcans scored eight of the next 10 points with Cal grasping a 12-7 lead. The Golden Eagles trimmed the deficit to 12-11 following a 4-0 run, however, the Vulcans answered with a 6-2 run to claim an 18-13 advantage and forced a Clarion timeout. The Golden Eagles then executed a 5-2 run and cut its deficit to two points that led to a Cal timeout. The Vulcans finished the first set with a 5-1 run that and closed the set on an attack error from the Golden Eagles, 25-19.

Cal gained an early 7-4 lead following a pair of errors from Clarion. The Golden Eagles captured momentum with a 6-1 run and took a 10-8 lead prompting a timeout by the Vulcans. Following the timeout, both teams traded the next four points until Cal orchestrated a 6-2 run and reclaimed the lead by a 16-14 margin. Cal and Clarion continued to battle back-and-forth as the teams traded the next 10 points and the Vulcans remained in front by a 21-19 edge. The Golden Eagles regained the lead, as they scored six of the next nine points to take a 25-24 margin. Cal claimed the second set, 28-26, after executing a 4-1 run.

In the third set, the Vulcans jumped out to a 6-2 lead following a kill from Rugiero. Cal extended its lead to 16-7 after a 10-2 run, however, the Golden Eagles answered with three-consecutive points to trim the deficit to 16-10. After a Vulcan timeout, Cal conducted a 6-2 run which was capped off by a Rugiero kill to give the Vulcans a 22-12 advantage. Clarion salvaged back-to-back points before Cal captured the set and match with a 25-14 victory in the third set.

The Vulcans are back in action tomorrow, Saturday, Oct. 22, as they host IUP on Homecoming in league action at 12 p.m.