Clarion Area Downs Bishop Canevin In Three Sets To Earn Second Straight PIAA Class-1A Girls Volleyball State Championship Game Berth

on 17 November, 2021 at 02:00

(Images by Nate and Tracy Girvan: Above – 2021 Western Champion Lady Cats.)

The Clarion Area Bobcats downed the Bishop Canevin Crusaders 3-0 (25-23, 25-14,25-21), in a Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) Girls Class-1A Volleyball State Semifinal at Slippery Rock High School, on Tuesday (November 16th). The two schools faced each other in the semifinals last year, won by Clarion on their way to the State Championship.

The Bobcats will now move on to the State Championship match, against District One champion Sacred Heart Academy Lions from Bryn Mawr, at Cumberland Valley High School in Mechanicsburg, this Saturday at 10:30 a.m.

The Bobcats were up 11-10, in the first set, after Korrin Burns broke serve with a kill, but the Crusaders went on a 10-3 run to lead 20-14. But Burns had another kill to break serve and Aryana Girvan had six straight service points to move the Cats into a 21-20 lead. With a point by Canevin and then a couple of kills by Burns the Bobcats led 23-21. The Crusaders came back to tie the score at 23-all. Clarion broke serve and Burns finished it off with another kill, for the 25-23 win. Burns and Girvan had a number of kills in the set and during the whole match, many were just blistering. Burns finished the night with thirty-three kills and Girvan had nine.

(2021 graduates and members of the Bobcats’ 2021 State Championship Team, (L-R) Erica Selfridge, Ava Kiser and Brenna Campbell were on hand to cheer the Cats on.)

The second set was a little easier for the Cats. Burns had a kill to break a 3-all tie. Then Noel Anthony had a six point run from the line, the last point an ace, to move Clarion to a 10-3 lead. Later, a three point service run by Jordan Best had the Bobcats up 15-7. A 4-1 run at the end of the match, with Anthony serving for three points, with Burns having kills on two of them and a kill by Payton Simko, on a Crusader serve, on match point, placed the Bobcats on win away from States.

(Aryana Girvan with the kill that sealed the win.)

After a service point by Bishop Canevin, to open the third set, Burns had a kill to break service. Then Bri Peirce had three service points, the first on an ace, with Burns getting kills on the other two, to give Clarion a 4-1 lead. The Crusaders came back to take the lead. With Canevin leading 15-11, Girvan had a kill and then stepped to the service line and commenced to serve seven straight points, to give the Cats a 19-15 lead. Burns had three kills and Adia Needham one, during the run. Girvan put the finishing touches on the match, by breaking Canevin’s serve, with a kill, for a the 25-21 final set win.

In addition to her 33 kills, Burns had 7 digs and scored a point. Girvan led Clarion at the line, with 14 points (2 aces), while collecting digs and the nine kills. Anthony followed with 11 points (2 aces), while delivering 40 assists to her teammates. She also had 8 digs and a kill. Best had 5 points, 7 digs and a pair of digs.

Pierce had 4 points (1 ace) and a dig. Needham scored 4 points and had three kills. Ochs scored 2 points and hauled in six digs. Simko had a kill and two digs.

About the team holding up under pressure, Coach Shari Campbell said, “We were so fortunate to play in some Quad A tournaments to put pressure on them, so that when they get pressure here, it feels normal.”

And about this team considering itself the 2021Bobcats, not the 2020 Bobcats. “Every year, it is so important that each team brings their identity and play their strength.

“I’m so proud of the team for responding to that, because there is a lot of pressure to repeat. I think coming through the West is super, like a meat grinder.

“I just can’t say enough about how they define themselves as the 2021 team. It’s nothing new. That’s just what we do. We always really try to find our personality and really exploit it, and do some mental training and team bonding stuff, that really brings that to life.”

Clarion Area has now faced Bishop Canevin six times in the PIAA playoffs (2010, 2012, 2014, 2017, 2020, 2021) and has yet to lose. The District Nine champion Bobcats faced the three District Seven (WPIAL) representatives in descending order in the playoffs, number 3 California, in the opening round, number 2 Greensburg Central Catholic, in the quarterfinals and the District champion Crusaders in the semifinals, winning each match in straight sets.

Way to go, Bobcats!!!! Beat the Lions!!!!

(Thanks to Nate and Tracy Girvan for their pics.)