Top 10 Clarkson Highlights - #2 Clarkson Volleyball Reaches Elite 8 for Fourth Straight Season

Wins weren't as overwhelming in 2015 for the Clarkson University Volleyball team as they had been in years past. Call it complacency, or perhaps other teams in the region were catching up. However, when Clarkson was announced as the New York Regional host for the fourth time in five years, many assumed that the Golden Knights would skate to yet another NCAA Quarterfinals appearance.

After breezing past Colby-Sawyer in the first round, fourth-seeded Ithaca College looked to be little more than a speed bump after 18 points in the first set as the Knights were clicking on offense with a 14-4 lead. That lead evaporated and the Knights inexplicably dropped the set, 25-23. Down six points in set number two, things looked even worse for the presumptive regional winner, but Clarkson battled its way to win that set and the third set. Still struggling to rediscover their offensive foothold in the fourth set, Clarkson got an unexpected spark in the way of Rachael Aird.

Not that Aird hadn't been a valuable component for the Golden Knights all year long. The AVCA All-Region selection averaged better than two kills per set and hit .288. But it was Aird's sudden dominance from the service line that changed the outcome of the fourth set and the match. Down by three, Aird took to the back line and delivered four straight aces to give Clarkson the lead. Later on when the match was tied at 20-20, a kill by Aishvina Arasu put Clarkson up by one and sent Aird back to the service line again, where she produced two more aces, including the clinching point for the set and match. Six aces, accounting for a third of her total of 18 in 2015.

It was that kind of season for the Golden Knights as they suffered through injuries all season long but always seemed to find a player to step up when they needed. Victoria Kirkemo missed several weeks, Aishvina Arasu had maladies, and setter Kirstie Shurie was out for a weekend when Clarkson would face four nationally-ranked teams. Each time Clarkson found a way to avoid any kind of significant slump, and finished the season at 30-9 overall and maintained its winning streak against regional teams, a run that now dates back to October 2012.

Clarkson ran into a buzz saw for the fourth straight year in the NCAA Quarterfinals as the Golden Knights were pitted against a team that would reach the NCAA Championship match for the fourth straight year, but that loss on the national stage takes nothing away from the dominance that the Class of 2015 put forth in their four-year run, as the team claimed the NCAA Regional Championship every year from 2012-2015.

2015-16 Clarkson University Athletic Highlights TOP 10 List

The Top 10 Clarkson University Athletic Department Highlights of 2015-16 were carefully selected by the Clarkson Sports Information Staff. Top 10 Clarkson highlights will be posted on Mondays throughout the summer.

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Players Mentioned

#10 Rachael Aird: OH/MH/RS; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#5 Aishvina Arasu: OH; 5' 10"; Senior

#6 Victoria Kirkemo: OH; 5' 9"; Senior

#17 Kirstie Shurie: S/L; 5' 5"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#10 Rachael Aird
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: OH/MH/RS

#5 Aishvina Arasu
: 5' 10"; Senior
: OH

#6 Victoria Kirkemo
: 5' 9"; Senior
: OH

#17 Kirstie Shurie
: 5' 5"; Senior
: S/L