Shippensburg University Athletics

SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. -- The Shippensburg University volleyball team defeated Kutztown in four sets on Saturday at Heiges Field House to claim the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Division for next week's Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Volleyball Championships. Set scores were 25-19, 25-11, 18-25 and 25-20.
 
Shippensburg (22-8, 13-1 PSAC East) won the PSAC Eastern Division title for the first time since the 2014 season. The PSAC maintained four divisions from 2016-19 and re-aligned back to two divisions in 2021 – Saturday's accomplishment marks SU's first divisional title since winning the PSAC Southeast Division in 2019.
 
The Raiders matched a season high with 16 service aces and hit .170 as a team.
 
Junior Kat Negron finished off an excellent weekend with 12 kills and was deadly on her services with a career-high seven aces. Junior Emily Gardner notched a career-high 24 digs and served two aces.
 
Freshman Gracen Nutt matched Negron with a team-high 12 kills, while Maddie Clabaugh posted her fifth double-double of the season with 10 kills and 12 digs. Clabaugh only had one attack error, finishing the day hitting .290.
 
Senior Kaitlyn Townsend and freshman Hailey Cappleman combined for 13 kills and five blocks. Sophomore setter Kearstin Davis had 37 assists and 11 digs.
 
Five Raiders finished with double-digit digs, including 11 by both senior Jackie Sterenberg and sophomore Berkley Simmons.
 
In the opening set, both sides traded points and runs throughout the first set with three lead changes and seven ties to reach a 17-17 score. A kill and an ace from Clabaugh gave the Raiders a two-point advantage. Ahead 19-18, consecutive kills by Cappleman and an ace by Simmons contributed to a four-point run that made it 23-18. A kill and an ace from Cappleman closed out the set.
 
The Raiders dominated in the second frame with several scoring runs to put the set out of reach early. A 3-0 service run from Davis with two kills by Clabaugh set the tone early. Ahead 6-4, Clabaugh served a 4-0 run with kills from Nutt and Cappleman. Just one Golden Bear point separated the Raiders next 4-0 run with Simmons serving to extend the lead to 14-5. Shippensburg held a 10-point advantage when a 5-0 service run all but closed out the set at 24-10. Cappleman slammed the door shut with a big kill send the match into the third set.
 
Kutztown found its momentum in the third set, taking a 25-18 victory to extend the match to a fourth set. The Golden Bears held the advantage for the majority of the set, but the Raiders remained close and tied the set at 16-16. From there, an 8-1 scoring run from the Golden Bears ultimately made it 2-1.
 
Shippensburg trailed 2-1 early in the fourth set, but Negron gave the Raiders momentum with an eight-point service run that included five aces and two kills from Nutt. The Golden Bears clawed their way back into the set, eventually coming all the way back to tie at 18-18. A 5-0 scoring run with Gardner providing the service gave the Raiders a big advantage at 23-18 before back-to-back kills from Nutt closed out the match.
 
Before the match, SU honored its five seniors: Jordan Bowen, Clabaugh, Nat Mazzone, Sterenberg and Townsend.
 
SU will host East No. 4 seed Lock Haven at 7 p.m. Tuesday in a PSAC Quarterfinal at Heiges Field House.