CASTLETON, Vt. – The Plattsburgh State women's volleyball team falls on the road at Vermont State University (VTSU) Castleton, falling to VTSU-Castleton 3-2 (25-19, 25-19, 25-17, 25-23, 15-11) in a five-set thriller and 3-0 (27-25, 25-21, 25-13) to SUNY Delhi to cap off their day.

Plattsburgh moves to 0-8 overall and next hosts Norwich for a match on Tuesday, Sep. 17 at 6 p.m. VTSU-Castleton moves to 5-2 and SUNY Delhi moves to 3-6 and will play each other later today.  

VTSU-Castleton 3, Plattsburgh 2 (25-19, 25-19, 25-17, 25-13, 15-11)

The Cardinals had 15 service aces on the day while the Spartans had 11. The Spartans had a slight edge in digs 69-67 and won the block battle 3-0.

Sophomore outside hitter Liya Girma (Sachse, Texas / Bishop Lynch) led the Cardinals in points with 19 registering 17 kills and two services aces. Girma also tallied 15 digs that led all players for her third double-double of the season. Sophomore right-side hitter Darby Collyear (Rockwall, Texas / Rockwall) contributed to the offensive game with 11 points on nine kills and two service aces. Sophomore defensive specialist KC Burke (Murrieta, Calif. / Northfield Mount Hermon) registered 13 digs while first-year setter Anabella Almeida (Pine Bush, N.Y. / Pine Bush) had a career-high 16 assists and junior setter Kyleigh Ganz (Phoenix Ariz. / Seton Catholic Prep) had 15.
 
For the Spartans, Hailey Martinovich led all players with 21.5 points. Alondra Rojas led all players in assists with 31 and the Spartans in digs with 13 for a double-double on the day.

Girma got the first set started with her first kill of the day. After both teams traded back-to-back points, the Cardinals led 3-2. A 4-0 run for the Cardinals led by three kills from Girma gave the Cardinals an 8-6 lead. The first set was closely contested with multiple lead changes and ties before until a 4-0 run for the Spartans gave them a 15-12 lead, the largest of the set. Back-to-back kills from Iris Mulvey (Middle Island, N.Y. / Longwood) brought the Cardinals within one but the Spartans responded in turn and pushed their lead to 17-14. A service ace from Sanaia Estime (West Hempstead, N.Y. / West Hempstead) made the score 19018 Spartans but the Spartans responded with three straight points. A kill from Katie Salphine (Le Roy, N.Y. / Le Roy) broke up the run, but the Spartans went on to score the next three points for a 25-19 win.
 
The second set was back and forth to start until the Spartans went on a 4-0 run that made the score 11-8 Spartans. After a service error for the Spartans, they responded with back-to-back points and extended their lead to 13-9. A 3-0 run for the Cardinals made the score 13-12 Spartans. A 6-0 run for the Cardinals powered by two service aces from Almeida gave the Cardinals a 21-18 lead. An attacking error broke up the run, but the Cardinals didn't lose any momentum and scored the next four points en route to a 25-19 victory.
 
After both teams traded points to start the set, the Cardinals scored back-to-back points and took a 3-1 lead. The Spartans responded with back-to-back points of their own and tied the score at 3. After a service error for the Spartans gave the Cardinals a lead, the Spartans responded with a 4-0 run that gave them an 11-8 lead that they didn't give back. Another run for the Spartans pushed their lead to 17-10. The Cardinals battled back and made the score 20-16. The Spartans ended the set on a 5-1 run for a 25-17 win.
 
The Spartans started the second set with back-to-back points followed by back-to-back points for the Cardinals. A 3-0 run for the Cardinals capped off with a kill from Ganz gave the Cardinals a 7-4 lead. Neither team had any long runs as they both traded points until the Cardinals had a 3-0 run that started and ended with a kill from Girma and made the score 17-12 Cardinals. The Spartans responded with a 4-0 run and made the score 18-17 Cardinals. Back-to-back points for the Spartans tied the game at 21. An attacking error for the Cardinals gave the Spartans the lead momentarily but the Cardinals recorded three straight points and won the fourth set 25-23.
 
After a back-and-forth game, the Cardinals and Spartans were tied 2-2 and needed a fifth set as a decider. The Spartans didn't waste any time and jumped out to a 4-0 lead. The Cardinals battled back and a service ace from Maggie Lyon (Ballston Spa, N.Y. / Ballston Spa) made the score 6-5 Spartans. Another run pushed the Spartans lead to 11-7. The Cardinals' offense matched the Spartans with four points, but the Spartans' four points were all they needed to take the finals set 15-11 and secure the match victory.
 
SUNY Delhi 3, Plattsburgh 0 (27-25, 25-21, 25-13)

The Broncos had 10 service aces to the Cardinals' six and also won the block battle 5-1. The Broncos had a slight edge in digs 59-55.

Mulvey led the Cardinals in points with nine off of eight kills and one service ace. Girma led the team in digs with 14 followed by Bridget Ryan (Mattituck, N.Y. / Mattituck) with 13. Almeida had another double-digit assist day with 12 while Ganz contributed with nine. Collyear and Salphine both recorded a block assist.

For the Broncos, Madelyn Diep led the team in points with 10 and digs with 14. Michaella DeCapua led all players in assists with 15 and also had 10 digs for a double-double.

The Broncos opened the first set with a 2-0 lead followed by a 3-0 Cardinal run that made the score 3-2 Cardinals. Another 3-0 run extended the Cardinals lead to 6-3. A kill from Mulvey and a service ace from Almeida pushed the Cardinals lead to 10-4. The Broncos didn't go away and went on a 6-0 run and made 14-13 Cardinals. An attacking error for the Cardinals gave the Broncos a 17-16 lead. Back-to-back kills from Mulvey made the score 18-17 Cardinals. Both teams continued to trade points and after three straight points from the Spartans, the score was tied 23 all. Collyear and Katelyn Babcock traded kills and made the score 24. A kill from Ganz made the score 25-24 but the Spartans scored the last three points to win the first set 27-25.

The Cardinals opened the second set with two points but two attacking errors from the Cardinals aided a 3-0 run for the Broncos that made the score 3-2 Broncos. Neither team had a huge lead but a 3-0 run for the Broncos gave them a 13-10 lead. With the score tied at 15, the Broncos scored two straight and took a 17-15 lead. A kill from Girma brought the Cardinals within one but a 3-0 Broncos run made the score 20-16 Broncos. The Cardinals responded with three of their own and made the score 20-19 Broncos. The Broncos outscored the Cardinals 5-2 to end the set and won 25-21.

Back-to-back service aces from Bella Perrone (Ridge, N.Y. / Longwood) put the Cardinals up 2-0 to start the third set. A 4-0 run from the Broncos made the score 5-3 Broncos. A kill from Mulvey brought the Cardinals within two but the Broncos continued to hold on to the lead. A 3-0 run made the score 10-5 Broncos. The Broncos' offense continued to add on and a 5-0 run propelled them to a 22-11 lead and eventually a 25-13 win to secure the match victory.