The Shippensburg University volleyball team began its Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) schedule Friday night with a straight-set victory at Mercyhurst, marking the second consecutive year that the Raiders have swept the Lakers.
 
Set scores were 25-17, 25-22, 25-23.
 
Shippensburg (12-1, 1-0 PSAC) took the first set rather comfortably, using a huge service run from senior Maria Peluso to flip a 10-8 deficit into a 17-10 lead.
 
Mercyhurst (6-4, 0-1) led 20-17 and 22-20 in the second set, but the Raiders closed the middle frame with five straight points. In the third set, Mercyhurst held a 21-18 lead before SU scored five straight points and eventually closing for the sweep.
 
Peluso once again relished the opportunity of playing in her hometown, tying her career high with seven service aces. Five of those aces came on her nine-point service run in the first set. She also added 10 digs and four assists on the night. Back in 2013, her freshman season, Peluso ripped a career-high 18 kills and had 10 digs in a five-set win over the Lakers.
 
SU finished with 11 aces on the night, as freshman Gabriella Johnson served two and the Raiders got one each from senior Maura Nolan and sophomore Angela Tarabrella.
 
No player for either team finished the match with double-digit kills, but Nolan was exemplary with 27 assists, seven digs and four kills on five attempts. Sophomore Morgan DeFloria led the Raiders with nine kills, while Johnson had six kills and a team-high 12 digs.
 
Freshman Samantha Webber maintained her outstanding play with seven kills on just one error, hitting .429. Fellow freshman Kendall Johnson had four kills and five blocks.  
 
Sweeps are additionally important beginning this season. One of the PSAC's main tiebreakers, effective in 2016, is the FIVB points system. Teams are awarded three points for a victory in three or four sets, two points for a victory in five sets, and one points for a loss in five sets.
 
This points system serves as the second tie-breaking criteria when seeding the conference tournament, while the number of sets won is the fourth tie-breaking criteria in determining qualifiers for the conference tournament.
 
Shippensburg will stay in Erie to face Gannon, a team receiving votes in the AVCA National Coaches Poll, at 2 p.m. Saturday from the Hammermill Center.