Hermit as a result of her action, sadly (9)
I believe the answer is:
anchorite
'hermit' is the definition.
('anchorite' can be a synonym of 'hermit')
'her action sadly' is the wordplay.
'sadly' is an anagram indicator.
'her'+'action'='heraction'
'heraction' with letters rearranged gives 'ANCHORITE'.
'as a result of' is the link.
(Other definitions for anchorite that I've seen before include "Religious recluse (hist.)" , "A solitary person" , "Holy recluse" , "Loner" , "Hermit or religious recluse" .)