PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – Making their first appearance of the season in Memorial Hall, the Plattsburgh State volleyball team played a spirited match against SUNY Canton, but ultimately fell 3-1 to their rivals on Tuesday night.

With the loss, the Cardinals slide to 1-7 while the Kangaroos improve to 7-1 and 2-3 all-time against Plattsburgh State.

Playing in front of their home fans for the first time in 2013, the Cardinals jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead by way of a kill from junior Maggie Schrantz as well as an attack error by SUNY Canton.

Responding quickly, the Kangaroos went on to take a 9-7 lead before the home squad reeled off three consecutive points, culminating with a combination block from Kristen Marchisotto and Laura Diehl.

That lead, however, would turn out to be the final one the Cardinals possessed in the first frame as SUNY Canton embarked on a 10-1 run which featured two of the 11 service aces accumulated by the visitors.

Chipping away at the lead, the Cardinals crept to within five points, 22-17, with a rare termination off the hand of Meghan Clifford. A pair of poor sets by Canton's Rachel Lowther allowed Plattsburgh State to close the gap to 23-19, but the Kangaroos' front line closed out the set by coming up with two of their 10 total blocks during the tilt.

Determined to place themselves on even ground with their North Country rivals, the Cardinals came up firing on all cylinders in the early stages of the second frame. Rosi Cummings smashed down a trio of kills as part of an opening 5-3 spurt by the home squad.

Canton closed the small gap over the course of the next two points, and the squads began to trade scores before the Cardinals were finally able to construct a lengthy run of their own.

Trailing 14-13, the home team fired off six straight points, including two more kills and a pair of service aces from Cummings to take a 19-14 lead. With the momentum in their corner, the Cardinals held off a late charge from the Kangaroos, and Laura Diehl slammed down a kill to knot matters at one set each.

Keeping the pressure on the visitors, Plattsburgh State got off to a fast start in the third set.  An additional pair of kills from Diehl and a service ace by Clifford helped the Cardinals grab a 5-1 lead.

Plattsburgh State kept the Kangaroos at arm's length until Kelsey Cornish stepped behind the service line for the Kangaroos. Leading 17-11, the Cardinals found themselves on the receiving end of a 9-0 assault by Canton which handed the visitors a 20-17 lead.

Jeanette Braun brought the Cardinals within one, 23-22, after one of her terminations, but two Canton kills and a bad set by Marchisotto put the Cardinals in a 2-1 hole.

In the fourth set, Diehl single-handedly gave the Cardinals a 3-0 lead by picking up three kills to open the frame. Eager to force a fifth set, Plattsburgh State extended their lead to 11-7 before a 6-1 stretch by Canton gave the visitors their first lead of the match at 13-12.

After both sides had traded points through the middle portion of the frame, Canton went on a decisive 6-0 run featuring terminations from three different players that made the score 22-16 Kangaroos.

Despite a valiant effort by the Cardinals at the tail end of the frame, Canton took the match as Cornish put down her final kill of the match that gave the Kangaroos a 25-22 victory in the fourth set.

Cummings did all she could for the Cardinals, collecting a game-high 14 kills and a team-high 20 digs to go along with three service aces and an assist. Schrantz racked up 12 terminations of her own and finished her double-double bid with 19 digs.

Marchisotto passed out 25 assists for the Cardinals.

Cornish had 14 kills for Canton while Jessica Reynolds collected 13 of her own. Lowther and Caitlin Grimshaw each posted five block assists for SUNY Canton.

The Kangaroos outhit the Cardinals .170 to .115 and held a 10-4 advantage in blocks.

The Cardinals will remain at Memorial Hall as they play host to five other teams as part of the 2013 Best
Western/Ground Round Cardinal Classic. The two-day match begins on Friday, and the first opponent Plattsburgh State will face is Norwich. That match is scheduled to start at 4:15 p.m.