PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Fresh off securing the program's second Little East Conference (LEC) title on Saturday, the Plymouth State University women's volleyball team is headed to Middletown, Conn., for the NCAA Tournament, as the NCAA revealed the 64-team bracket for the 2025 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Tournament on Monday.
 
Plymouth State (23-7), making its first NCAA appearance since 2004, will take on #15 Ithaca College (26-4) in a first-round matchup at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday (Nov. 20). #16 Wesleyan University will serve as the regional host.
 
PSU entered the LEC Tournament as the No. 3 seed and avenged both of its regular season league losses to reach the championship match for the fourth straight year.
 
The Panthers opened the revenge tour by dispatching No. 6 Keene State in four sets (25-18, 25-12, 22-25, 25-22) in last Tuesday's first round. Keene State had taken the regular-season meeting, 3-1, at Foley Gymnasium on Oct. 8. Freshman Sya McKay (Somersworth, N.H.) hammered 16 kills and hit just shy of .500, while graduate student Ella Koelb (Auburn, N.H.) posted her nation-leading seventh triple-double of the year with 16 kills, 19 assists, and 12 digs.
 
That win set up a rematch with No. 2 UMass Boston on Thursday. The Beacons had swept the finale to deny PSU the regular-season title, but this time it was Plymouth State earning the sweep (25-23, 25-22, 26-24). Koelb broke a 22-22 tie in set one with one of her match-high 18 kills, and a string of untimely missed serves by UMass Boston proved costly in set two. PSU then erased a 24-21 deficit in the third, as Koelb sparked the rally before sophomore Sydney Riley (Haverhill, Mass.) sealed the win to send the Panthers back to the finals.
 
Plymouth State then squared off with top-seeded and two-time defending champion UMass Dartmouth in the championship match for the third straight season. Riley delivered two late kills to close out a 25-22 win in set one, and junior Annalyn Cahill (Mystic, Conn.) dominated set two with seven kills during a massive 15-1 surge as PSU cruised, 25-10. UMD answered in the third (25-17), but the Panthers jumped ahead early in set four and stayed in front the rest of the way. The Corsairs cut the deficit to 19-18, but a Riley kill and block swung the momentum as PSU locked up the title with a 25-20 victory. Koelb was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player after leading the Panthers with 43 kills (3.91/set), 67 assists (6.09/set), 25 digs (2.27/set), four blocks, and three aces.
 
Ithaca enters the NCAA Tournament after running the table in Liberty League play (8-0) to earn its automatic berth and secure a 10th straight national tournament appearance. The Bombers swept Skidmore (25-16, 25-21, 25-11) in Friday's semifinals, then outlasted William Smith in a five-set thriller (25-23, 15-25, 25-19, 18-25, 15-13) on Saturday evening.
 
The winner of Thursday's matchup will face the winner of Wesleyan vs. NYU in Friday's (Nov. 21) regional semifinal at 7 p.m. The regional final is slated for Saturday (Nov. 22) at 5 p.m.