PLYMOUTH, N.H. – The Plymouth State University women's volleyball team extended its season-opening win streak to nine after notching wins over the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and New England College on Lace Up for Pediatric Cancer day at Foley Gymnasium on Saturday.
 
The Panthers dispatched of UMass Dartmouth, 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-12), in the Little East Conference (LEC) opener for both teams, before fending off a pesky NEC squad, 3-1 (25-18, 25-18, 21-25, 25-19) in the final match of the afternoon.
 
Junior Emilee Flanagan (Milton, N.H.) pounded down a match-high nine kills without an error and added four blocks in the win over UMass Dartmouth, while senior Alexa Price (Moultonborough, N.H.) handed out 32 assists and chipped in six aces.
 
Freshman Lilli Stogner (Weare, N.H.) smashed a career-best 16 kills against NEC as junior Marissa Plaza (Folsom, Calif.) anchored the Panthers' defense with a 17-dig effort.
 
PSU (9-0, 1-0 LEC) has won nine straight to open the season for the second time in three years. UMass Dartmouth, which topped NEC in the day's other match, moved to 3-4 (0-1 LEC), while NEC dropped to 7-4 on the year.
 
The Basics:

• Plymouth State 3, UMass Dartmouth 0
• Plymouth State 3, NEC 1
  • Plymouth State (9-0, 1-0 LEC)
  • UMass Dartmouth (3-4, 0-1 LEC)
  • NEC (7-4)

How it Happened (UMass Dartmouth):

• PSU got out to a quick lead, but the visitors rallied to grab a 17-14 advantage midway through the first set. Sophomore Nora Ryan (Groton, Conn.) found the floor before serving three straight aces as part of an 8-1 run for the Panthers. UMD got as close as 23-21, but a kill by senior Maria Wimpey (Concord, N.H.) and Price's ace capped a 25-21 win.
• Freshman Makayla Marucci (Newton, Mass.) served five straight points to break a 13-13 tie in set two. Plaza's ace and a UMD error pushed the lead to 22-14 and back-to-back kills by Ryan closed out a 25-17 victory.
• Plymouth State raced out to a 6-0 lead in the third stanza and the Corsairs never threatened. Ryan's ace pushed the margin to 16-5 and PSU closed the match with six straight points for the 25-12 win.

By the Numbers (UMass Dartmouth):

• Flanagan and Ryan each posted match-bests of nine kills. Flanagan hit .563 (9-0-16), while Ryan added four aces from the service line.
• Wimpey chipped in with seven kills and Stogner added six.
• Price posted 32 assists and six aces.
• Plaza patrolled the backrow with a match-high 15 digs. Freshman Imalay Rodriguez Martinez (Juncos, Puerto Rico) added seven.
• UMass Dartmouth hit .333 in the opening set, but the PSU defense clamped down from there limiting the Corsairs to just -.041 the rest of the way.
• The Panthers are 26-2 against UMD all time and have won 22 straight matches against the Corsairs.

 
How it Happened (NEC):

• NEC held a 15-11 lead in the first set, but a service error gave Plymouth State the serve and senior Katie Townsend (Layton, Utah) ripped off eight straight points. Wimpey had a pair of kills in the rally as PSU jumped ahead, 20-15. The Pilgrims would not get closer than five points the rest of the way and back-to-back errors by the visitors gave PSU a 25-18 win.
• Townsend's serving again helped the Panthers to a lead in the second set, as the defensive specialist ran seven straight for an 11-4 lead. Wimpey caught fire, notching four kills in the streak. Another Wimpey winner pushed the margin to double digits, 22-12, and PSU withstood a late rally for another 25-18 win capped by Stogner's thunderous kill.
• Not to be deterred, the Pilgrims took advantage of some PSU miscues to build a 22-17 lead in set three. Stogner notched a kill to spark a comeback big and Flanagan added a kill and huge solo block to force an NEC timeout, but the visitors were able to recover for a 25-21 win to force a fourth set.
• PSU started slowly in set four, trailing 11-9, but Stogner's kill and Flanagan's block kick started the Panthers. Stogner added two more winners as PSU took the lead for good. Ryan and Wimpey teamed up on a block to give the hosts a 20-16 lead and Ryan's ace would seal the 25-19 win.

By the Numbers (NEC):

• Stogner was efficient hitting .351 (16-3-37) while setting a career mark for kills in a match. Wimpey also set a career-high with 13 kills, while Flanagan added nine kills and hit .381.
• Price added 42 assists and is now just eight shy of 2,000 for her career.
• Plaza led the defense with 17 digs, follow by nine for Marucci and seven from Rodriguez Martinez.
• Plymouth State pounded down 19 kills in the second set and finished with 53 in the match.

 
Up Next:

• Plymouth State remains at home on Tuesday (Sept. 21) for a 6:00 p.m. clash with St. Joseph's College (Maine), before a stretch of three-straight LEC contests.