ONEONTA N.Y. – Less than 24 hours after suffering a heartbreaking 3-2 defeat, the Plattsburgh State volleyball team was determined not to allow extra sets to be a factor in their fortunes as it closed out play at the Hartwick College/Holiday Inn Invitational on Saturday (Oct. 13).
Senior outside hitter Rosi Cummings was named to the 2012 Hartwick College / Holiday Inn Invitational All-Tournament Team, finishing the weekend with 28 kills.
The Cardinals came out of the gates rolling and never slowed down en route to a pair of 3-0 wins against Utica and SUNY Cobleskill to bring their 2012 record to 11-14 heading into their final weekend of SUNYAC Pool Play next week.
MATCH ONE: Plattsburgh State 3, Utica 0 (25-22, 25-11, 25-21)
Needing just eight of the 10 available players on the roster, the Cardinals spread the ball around and had an easy time handing the Pioneers their eighteenth loss of the 2012 campaign – this one in straight sets.
Cummings led a balanced offensive attack for the Cardinals, racking up nine kills to go along with a team-high 12 digs. The Plattsburgh, N.Y., product also chipped in two of the eight Plattsburgh State service aces and had a block assist to her credit as well.
Maggie Schrantz finished with eight terminations on a team-high 28 swings. She was the only other Cardinal to reach double-digits in digs, scooping 10 to go along with a solo block.
Laura Diehl was the third attack option for the Cardinals, finishing with seven kills on 19 attempts as well as a solo block and a block assist.
Kristen Marchisatto and Kayla Nason split time at setter once again, and finished with 15 and 13 assists respectively. Marchisatto also put her service game on display, accumulating a team-high trio of service aces during the one-sided affair.
Abby Mell had the best-rounded match for the Cardinals, making her presence felt in every facet of the game. The senior finished with three kills, a pair of service aces, six digs, a solo block and a pair of block assists.
MATCH TWO: Plattsburgh State 3, SUNY Cobleskill 0
Turning in quite possibly the best match of her young collegiate career, Diehl led the Cardinals to their second sweep of the day, this time over SUNY Cobleskill.
The Manorville, N.Y., native gave Cobleskill fits all match, collecting a team-high 12 kills on 18 swings – good for an impressive .611 hitting percentage. She completed her double-double bid with a team-high 14 digs and chipped in one of the seven Plattsburgh State service aces in the match.
Diehl also proved to be a front row force, coming up with three solo blocks as well as a pair of block assists. The rest of the Cardinals backed Diehl up nicely, as Cummings tallied eight kills and 13 digs as well as three service aces while Schrantz and Mell each added seven terminations of their own.
Nason tallied a lone kill as well as the remaining three service aces to go with 10 digs. Meghan Clifford put her setting skills on display, passing out a team-high 16 assists. Nason chipped in 12 helpers of her own.
The Cardinals will embark on yet another road trip next Friday (Oct. 19) when they head to New Paltz to take part in the final SUNYAC Pool Play weekend of the 2012 campaign. First up is a date with New Paltz at 3 p.m. followed by a rematch with SUNY Potsdam at 7 p.m.
