PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – The Plattsburgh State women's volleyball team continued action at UMass Boston, facing off against Amherst before taking on RIT as the Cardinals looked to get back on the winning side after falling to host UMass Boston yesterday. After dropping their first match of the day to Amherst, 3-0 (12-25, 23-25, 19-25), Plattsburgh bounced back in its final match against RIT with a 3-1 (25-20, 16-25, 25-17, 25-18) win over the Tigers, marking the first win over RIT in program history.
The Cardinals completed action at Clark Athletic Center Gymnasium with a 1-1 record on the day.
Game 1: Amherst 3, Plattsburgh State 0 (12-25, 23-25, 19-25)
After a slow start offensively, the Cardinals bounced back with a much more competitive second set, just falling short of the set win before dropping the third and final set in a 3-0 loss to Amherst in their first match of the day.
Sophomore setter
Emily O'Brien (Monroe, N.Y./Monroe-Woodbury) paced the Cardinal offense with a game-high 19 assists, while senior opposite hitter
Darby Collyear (Rockwall, Texas/Rockwall) and senior outside hitter
Liya Girma (Sachse, Texas/Bishop Lynch) both finished with seven kills. First-year middle blockers
Augustina White (Newburgh, N.Y./Newburgh Free Academy) and
Brooke Anderson (Queensbury, N.Y./Queensbury) were strong at the net, with White recording a career- and game-high four blocks and Anderson adding three blocks.
For the Mammoths, Judith Subirats-Bosch set up the offense with 17 assists, while Raegan Lentz led the attack with 10 kills. Stella Jacey led all players with a game-high 17 digs.
Plattsburgh held a clear advantage at the net, dominating the blocking battle, 7-2, while Amherst held the statistical advantage in digs, 50-34, and aces, 10-4.
The first set saw the Mammoths take an early 7-2 lead, while sporadic kills from White and Girma brought the score to 12-5. Although
Iris Mulvey (Middle Island, N.Y./Longwood) and Girma added kills throughout the set, Plattsburgh's offense couldn't find its rhythm and fell 25-12 in the opening set.
Plattsburgh's offense picked up in the second set as three consecutive points early had the Cardinals in front, 6-3. Halfway through the set, Amherst tied the score at 13-13 before a Girma service ace put Plattsburgh back in front, 14-13. That lead was short-lived as both teams traded the lead back and forth late. A kill from Collyear gave the Cardinals a 23-22 advantage, but Plattsburgh couldn't capitalize, and a 3-0 run to end the set gave the Mammoths the 25-23 set win.
The third and final set followed a similar script to the second as both teams kept it close, with a Mulvey kill tying the set at 9-9. However, Amherst was able to flip the momentum with a 5-0 surge to take a 14-9 lead. Back-to-back kills from Collyear and Girma broke up the Amherst run, but the Cardinals couldn't muster a run of their own and fell 25-19 as Amherst earned the 3-0 win.
Game 2: Plattsburgh State 3, RIT 1 (25-20, 16-25, 25-17, 25-18)
The Cardinals bounced back in their second match of the day, winning the opening set before taking the final two sets to secure a 3-1 bounce-back win over RIT and close out the weekend tournament on a high note.
Girma led the offensive attack with a game-high 15 kills to go with nine digs and four service aces as she barely missed out on the double-double. Mulvey nearly had a double-digit kill performance with nine kills and added three service aces. O'Brien continued to have an impact in the Cardinal attack with a career- and game-high 32 assists to go with seven kills. Defensively, senior libero
KC Burke (Murrieta, Calif./Northfield Mount Hermon [Mass.]) led the way with a game-high 15 digs.
For the Tigers, Isabel Swain set up the offense with 21 assists and Anna Wasula led the attack with 13 kills.
Plattsburgh dominated digs, 57-51, and service aces, 13-10, while RIT had the edge in blocks, 5-2.
After a 4-0 start from RIT, Plattsburgh flipped the momentum with a 7-0 run that featured three points from Mulvey. The Tigers responded and took a 12-9 lead before three straight kills from Plattsburgh tied the game at 12-12. Both teams continued to go back and forth until the Cardinals took the lead for good at 16-15 and closed the set with a kill from Girma to win the opening set, 25-20.
RIT opened a 7-3 lead in the second set and continued to lead 11-9 after a three-point swing capped by a Collyear ace. Back-to-back kills from O'Brien and Girma brought the Cardinals within one, but RIT ended the set with multiple scoring runs, ultimately taking the set 25-16.
The Cardinals had a strong start to the third set, holding a 9-3 lead after scoring five straight points during Girma's service run. Plattsburgh continued to pour it on with another run as Burke netted two service aces to push the lead to 18-10 before the Cardinals took a 25-17 set victory following a White kill.
Early in the final set, Plattsburgh held a 12-7 lead following a 6-0 surge that featured two service aces from
Avery Jackson (New Rochelle, N.Y./New Rochelle) during her service run. RIT came within one at 16-15, but Plattsburgh held strong and responded with back-to-back points to cushion the lead to 18-15 before going ahead 23-17. Jackson then recorded her third service ace of the evening to slam the door on the Cardinals' 25-18 win and secure the 3-1 match victory.
With the split, Plattsburgh moves to 3-4 and will return home for a non-conference matchup with the Cadets of Norwich on Tuesday, Sept. 15, at 6 p.m.
