NEW PALTZ, N.Y. – Despite finishing with an 11-6 edge in blocks, the Plattsburgh State women's volleyball team dropped a 3-1 (25-17, 25-15, 22-25, 25-17) decision to SUNY New Paltz in State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) action Friday evening at the Hawk Center.
 
The Hawks hit .128 for the match and finished with a 73-54 advantage in digs, while both teams posted 10 service aces.
 
Plattsburgh State falls to 6-6 overall (1-1 SUNYAC) with the loss and next visits SUNY Oneonta tomorrow at 1 p.m. New Paltz rises to 6-6 overall (2-0 SUNYAC) with the win and hosts SUNY Potsdam tomorrow at 1 p.m.
 
After the Cardinals scored the first point of the match, the Hawks went on a 7-0 run. Plattsburgh State then scored four of the next five points, and a pair of kills by junior outside hitter/opposite Jenn Braun (Garrison, N.Y./Walter Panas) drew the Cardinals within 8-5. Plattsburgh State pulled within three once more, but a 5-0 New Paltz surge put the Hawks comfortably ahead. New Paltz won the first set, 25-17.
 
The two teams went back and forth in the early going of the second set, but New Paltz rattled off eight straight points to take a commanding 20-9 advantage. While the Cardinals scored consecutive points twice down the stretch, a kill by first-year middle hitter Letisha Perez and a Plattsburgh State setting error handed the Hawks a 25-15 triumph in the second.
 
Plattsburgh State hopped out to an early 5-0 lead in the third, thanks to three straight service aces from senior outside hitter/opposite Meghan O'Brien (Marietta, N.Y./Marcellus). New Paltz eventually chipped away at the deficit, and a 3-0 run tied the score at 20-all. A block by senior middle hitter Ann Beauchamp (Potsdam, N.Y./Potsdam), a Hawk attacking error and a block assist by senior opposite Kaitlyn Bjelko (Plattsburgh, N.Y./Beekmantown) and Beauchamp put Plattsburgh State out in front for good, and a Bjelko termination handed the Cardinals a 25-22 win in the third.
 
While New Paltz opened up a 13-8 lead in the fourth, three unanswered Cardinal points pulled the visitors within two. The Hawks fired off six consecutive points to break open a 19-11 cushion, which wound up being the separation they needed in a match-clinching 25-17 victory in the fourth.
 
O'Brien keyed the Cardinal attack with seven kills and added three service aces, while sophomore setter Emma Rivers (Nesconset, N.Y./Smithtown West) had a 12-assist, 12-dig double-double. Beauchamp reinforced the front row defensively with a career-high seven total blocks (one solo, six assist), while Braun posted five block assists.
 
For New Paltz, Perez finished with 15 kills and a .357 hitting percentage, while sophomore setter Cate DiGiacomo quarterbacked the offense to the tune of 37 assists. DiGiacomo added 10 digs to complete the double-double. Sophomore outside hitter Mackenzie Williams notched a double-double with 11 kills and 13 digs, while junior libero Mia Waddell defended a match-high 22 digs.