CANTON, N.Y. – The Plattsburgh State women's volleyball team ensured its best start to a season through nine matches since 1991, topping host SUNY Canton, 3-2 (25-17, 18-25, 25-15, 23-25, 16-14), before downing Wells College, 3-0 (25-21, 26-24, 25-20), on Saturday at the North Country Classic hosted at Canton's Roos House.
 
Plattsburgh State rises to 7-2 overall with the wins and next faces SUNY Morrisville (1 p.m.) and Nazareth University (3 p.m.) in a tri-match at Morrisville on Saturday, Sept. 23. Canton falls to 2-8 overall with the loss, while Wells slips to 3-7 overall with the setback.
 
Plattsburgh State 3, Canton 2 (25-17, 18-25, 25-15, 23-25, 16-14)
 
Down 14-9 in the fifth set, Plattsburgh State fought off match point four times before winning three more rallies to clinch a 16-14 victory in the frame.
 
Canton jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the fifth and wound up extending its advantage to 10-3. The Cardinals received four unanswered points on the strength of two kills by first-year outside hitter Liya Girma (Sachse, Texas/Bishop Lynch) and two Kangaroo attacking errors, but a 4-2 Canton surge brought up match point at 14-9. A service error brought the serve back to Plattsburgh State before the Cardinals won the next point on a hitting error and the point after that on a kill by sophomore middle hitter Jeannette Ashong (Poughkeepsie, N.Y./Arlington). An attacking error and a solo block by Ashong tied the score at 14-all, while Ashong gave Plattsburgh State the lead with a kill. The Cardinals clinched the match on an attacking error.
 
The Cardinals dominated the first set early, opening up a 9-1 advantage, and never trailed in the opening stanza on their way to a 25-17 victory. While a kill by Ashong and a Kangaroo attacking error put Plattsburgh State on top, 12-10, Canton ended up scoring four straight points midway through the second set before using an 8-1 run to pull away in a 25-18 triumph.
 
While Canton used a 4-0 scoring spree to take a 12-10 lead in the third set, Plattsburgh State rattled off nine unanswered points to stake itself to a 19-12 cushion. The Kangaroos were unable to score consecutive points the rest of the way in the third, and a service ace by sophomore defensive specialist Bridget Ryan (Mattituck, N.Y./Mattituck) handed the Cardinals a 25-15 win in the third.
 
Canton kept Plattsburgh State at arm's length for the majority of the fourth set and brought up set point at 24-21 following a kill by senior outside hitter Cadin Taggart. Sophomore setter/right side Kyleigh Ganz (Phoenix, Ariz./Seton Catholic Prep) floored kills on back-to-back points before Taggart landed a termination on the ensuring rally to seal a 25-23 victory for Canton in the fourth.
 
Plattsburgh State hit .123 for the match, while Canton fashioned an .060 hitting percentage. The Cardinals held an 11-8 edge in service aces, while the Kangaroos owned an 8-4 margin in blocks and a 73-72 differential in digs.
 
Girma led the Cardinal attack with a career-high 18 kills and completed the double-double with 12 digs. Ashong added 11 kills to go along with three total blocks (two solo, one assist), while senior libero Payton Zophy (Clifton Park, N.Y./Shenendehowa) defended 22 digs. Senior setter Emma Rivers (Nesconset, N.Y./Smithtown West) kept the offense moving with 27 assists and chipped in at the service line with three aces, while Ryan registered a career-high four service aces.
 
For Canton, Taggart and junior middle hitter Sarah Balcom each floored 10 kills, while sophomore setter Sammie Frank distributed 23 assists. Defensively, senior libero Kaylee Clark had 22 digs, while Balcom posted five total blocks (one solo, four assist).
 
Plattsburgh State 3, Wells 0 (25-21, 26-24, 25-20)
 
Plattsburgh State hit at a .204 clip in its second match of the day and held the upper hand in service aces (11-7) and digs (44-41). The Express outblocked the Cardinals by a 5-1 margin.
 
Wells jumped out to a 6-2 lead in the first set, but a 6-1 tear that saw Ryan serve up two aces gave Plattsburgh State an 8-7 advantage. The Cardinals took the lead for good midway through the set with a 7-1 run, which saw Girma floor three kills. Plattsburgh State wound up cruising to a 25-21 win in the first.
 
The two teams battled back and forth in the early stages of the second set, but a 7-1 Cardinal surge—which saw first-year right side Darby Collyear (Rockwall, Texas/Rockwall) register a pair of kills—pinned Plattsburgh State to a 16-12 edge. Wells eventually tied the score at 19-all and took the lead at 23-22 before bringing up set point with a kill by senior middle hitter Miah Williamson. Collyear and first-year middle hitter Katie Salphine (Le Roy, N.Y./Le Roy) each connected for a kill to swing set point in the opposite direction, prompting the Express to call a timeout. Ganz dialed up a set to Girma on the ensuing rally, which Girma converted on to seal a 26-24 victory for the Cardinals in the second.
 
Wells held a 9-7 advantage in the third, and after the two teams traded points, a 4-1 run midway through the frame put Plattsburgh State up, 18-15. Following an Express point, Collyear chipped in two kills in a 4-0 spurt that gave the Cardinals a commanding 22-16 advantage, and Plattsburgh State wound up taking the third by a 25-20 score.
 
Collyear keyed the Plattsburgh State attack with a career-high 13 kills and a .417 hitting percentage, while Rivers dished out 19 assists and had three service aces. Zophy led the back row defensively with 16 digs.
 
For Wells, Williamson and first-year middle hitter/right side Elise Peacock each finished with nine kills, while the defense was led by first-year outside hitter Alycia Wilson's 16 digs and Williamson's four block assists.