POTSDAM, NY – The third-seeded RIT volleyball team (22-17) fell to top-seed Clarkson University (34-3), ranked No. 16 in Division III by scores of 25-21, 25-17, 25-19 in the Liberty League Championship match on Saturday afternoon from Alumni Gymnasium.
 
Clarkson has won 14 straight matches and is heading to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth straight season and won the Liberty League Tournament for the third straight season.
 The Golden Knights won their 30th straight match against conference opponents on Saturday, dating back to the 2012 Liberty League Tournament Championships. Clarkson also won its 62nd straight match against a New York Region opponent.
 
Sarah Szybist (Chicago, IL/Ramstein) and Emma Dowdy (Cocoa, FL/Edgewood) were named to the All-Tournament Team for the Tigers. Clarkson's Victoria Kirkemo and Laurie Shurie were named Liberty League Tournament Co-Most Valuable Players.
 
"First, I'd like to congratulate Clarkson on winning the Liberty League," said RIT head coach Jim Lodes. "They are a very good program that I expect to do well in the NCAA tournament.
 
I'm very proud of our team this weekend. We took a step as a program to start truly thinking about competing for Liberty League championships and NCAA bids. I think we also have a better idea of exactly what it would take to accomplish these goals. Now I expect us to start working towards those goals."

In the opening set, RIT displayed a solid block that frustrated the Knights, forcing Clarkson into several hitting errors. With the two teams tied at 19-19, Clarkson recorded six of the final eight points to take the first set.

The second set saw RIT jump out to an early lead, but Clarkson quickly recovered to take the lead, but the two teams were knotted at 13-13. Clarkson then rallied with nine points in the next 11.

RIT led 16-13 in the third set, but could not hang on, as Clarkson proved to be just too much.
 
Kirkemo recorded 11 kills and 11 digs to lead Clarkson, while Lauren Hutchinson and Aishvina Arasu each delivered seven kills. Evanne Jimenez had 10 digs and four aces, while Shurie had 22 assists.

Szybist led RIT with 14 kills and also added nine digs and three aces. Laiz Novaes (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil/Centro Educational) had nine kills and 12 digs, while Bethany Davis (Blasdell, NY/Frontier) also scored 17 digs. Emma Dowdy (Cocoa, FL/Edgewood) keyed the offense with 25 assists.  Abby Higgins (Peru, NY/Peru) had a team-best three blocks.
 
Szybist became just the second player in the history of RIT volleyball to surpass 700 kills in a season, with 709. That total leads all of Division III. Emily Verbridge '02 slammed 730 in 2001 to hold RIT's single-season record.
 
Davis will finish her RIT career with a school record 2,171 career digs. A model of consistency, Davis had 545, 549, 540, and 537 digs in her four seasons as a Tiger.
 
The Tigers went 0-3 against Clarkson this season, also falling in three sets on Sept. 19 and Oct. 24. RIT leads the all-time series between the two schools, 25-14.
 
Yesterday, RIT advanced to the championship match by defeating St. Lawrence in the semifinals. RIT dropped the first set, 25-22, before coming back to win the next three, 25-19, 25-19, 25-21. Szybist slammed 19 kills, while Dowdy added 47 assists.