PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – The Plattsburgh State women's volleyball team fell twice on Saturday at the Cardinal Quad at Memorial Hall, losing, 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-23), to the Worcester Polytechnic Institute before dropping a 3-2 (25-21, 25-21, 13-25, 20-25, 15-10) heartbreaker to Gordon College in the nightcap.
 
Plattsburgh State falls to 6-18 overall with the losses and visits SUNY Geneseo for the final weekend of State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Pool Play from Friday-Saturday, Oct. 19-20. The Cardinals open up the weekend against host Geneseo on Friday, Oct. 19, at 5 p.m. WPI and Gordon rise to 18-3 and 12-11, respectively, with the wins.
 
WPI 3, Plattsburgh State 0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-23)
 
Though the Cardinals limited WPI to .139 hitting and held the upper hand in blocks (9-5), the Engineers were able to prevail in straight sets. WPI held a 9-4 advantage in service aces and a 46-41 cushion in digs.
 
After back-and-forth play early in the first, the Engineers scored three straight points to build a 16-13 advantage and force a Cardinal timeout. WPI went on a 4-1 surge to take a 21-16 lead and eventually won the set, 25-21.
 
A pair of 5-0 runs midway through the second set allowed WPI to take a 17-8 lead, which came following a service ace by junior outside hitter Colleen Mullins. With set point on the line at 24-14, the Cardinals scored three straight points on a solo block by freshman middle blocker/opposite Ann Beauchamp (Potsdam, N.Y./Potsdam), a kill by junior outside hitter Megan Hyde (Schenectady, N.Y./Schalmont) and a service ace by freshman defensive specialist Elora Sherman (Huntington Station, N.Y./Harborfields), but WPI ended the set with a block assist on the ensuing rally.
 
After both teams experienced momentum swings in the third, WPI took a 20-17 advantage. Plattsburgh State came back, though, and freshman middle blocker/opposite Tara McGovern (Holbrook, N.Y./Sachem North) knotted the tally at 20-all with a kill. Coming out of a timeout down 23-21, Hyde posted back-to-back kills, but WPI scored the next two points to clinch the straight-set sweep.
 
Hyde paced Plattsburgh State with 11 kills, while freshman setter/opposite Lauren DeVoe (Wayne, N.J./Wayne Valley) distributed 21 assists. Defensively, McGovern finished with a career-high seven total blocks (one solo, six assist), while sophomore defensive specialist Maddy Zophy (Clifton Park, N.Y./Shenendehowa) defended 13 digs.
 
For WPI, senior outside hitter Casey Hunt led a balanced attack with nine kills, while senior setter Azita Bakhtyari handed out 23 assists. Mullins served up four aces, while senior libero Victoria Nassar reinforced the back row defensively with 19 digs.
 
Gordon 3, Plattsburgh State 2 (25-21, 25-21, 13-25, 20-25, 15-10)
 
Plattsburgh State nearly pulled off a come-from-behind victory, as the Cardinals forced a fifth set after losing the first two. Gordon hit .286 in the deciding set, though, to come away with the win.
 
The Cardinals took an early 11-8 advantage in the first set, which included a pair of service aces and a block by Beauchamp. Gordon went on a 7-0 spurt in response and seized a 15-11 lead, and while Plattsburgh State tied the score at 17-all following a kill by sophomore middle blocker Michelle Simmons (Riverside, Calif./Riverside Poly), the Fighting Scots went on a 5-0 tear and took a 22-17 lead. Four consecutive attack errors by Gordon drew Plattsburgh State within one, but Gordon pulled out the 25-21 win in the set by scoring each of the final three points.
 
Neither team was able to create separation for most of the second, but Gordon did use a 3-0 run to capture a 23-18 advantage. Simmons stopped the scoring spree with a kill, but the Fighting Scots wound up winning the set, 25-21 by scoring two of the next four points.
 
Plattsburgh State clicked on all cylinders in the third, breaking open a 12-4 cushion following a block assist by Beauchamp and freshman middle blocker/opposite Meghan O'Brien (Marietta, N.Y./Marcellus). The Cardinals continued to hold the sizeable lead and punctuated the end of the third set with a service ace by Sherman.
 
After dictating the momentum for much of the fourth set, the Cardinals saw a 16-12 lead evaporate with a 6-1 Fighting Scot tear. Coming out of a timeout, Plattsburgh State scored four straight points, and Hyde handed the Cardinals a 21-19 lead following a kill. Gordon got the serve back, but a Fighting Scot attacking error, a block assist by DeVoe and Beauchamp, a bad set by Gordon and a Hyde service ace handed the Cardinals a 25-20 victory in the fourth.
 
While Plattsburgh State scored the first two points of the fifth set on a kill by Hyde and a Beauchamp service ace, Gordon scored six straight points to build a 6-2 lead. The Fighting Scots kept the Cardinals at arm's length the rest of the set and took the 15-10 match-clinching victory in the fifth following a kill by sophomore setter Ashlyn Gergins.
 
Gordon held a slight .153-to-.145 edge in hitting percentage during the match. Plattsburgh State owned a 12-6 edge in service aces, but Gordon held the upper hand in digs, 56-48. Both teams finished with 10 blocks.
 
Simmons and Hyde paced the Cardinals with 13 and 12 kills, respectively, while DeVoe kept the offense running with 35 assists. Beauchamp had a standout performance with career-highs in total blocks (6) and service aces (4). Zophy recorded a team-high 13 digs.
 
For Gordon, junior right side Jamie Tafoya, junior outside hitter Amanda Snyder and senior outside hitter Mackenzie Hinds tallied 14, 13 and 12 kills, respectively, while Gergins distributed 42 assists. Defensively, Hinds and freshman defensive specialist/libero Hayley Robinson tied for the match-high in digs with 17 each, with Hinds' total completing a double-double.