PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Sophomore
Sya McKay (Somersworth, N.H.) recorded 10 kills and Plymouth State University hit .426 as a team in a 3-0 sweep of Norwich University (25-9, 25-7, 25-10) in a non-conference match at Foley Gymnasium on Tuesday evening.
The opening set was tied at 6-6, but sophomores
Emily Sousa (Farmington, Conn.) and
Alice Borriello Diaz (Toa Baja, Puerto Rico) had long serving runs as the Panthers used a 19-3 surge to pull away. PSU led by just one, 6-5, early in set two, but the Panthers scored 19 of the next 21 points. The hosts got out to a 6-1 lead in the third set before the Panthers rolled to the sweep.
McKay was the lone player to reach double figures in kills, hitting .562 for the match (10-1-16), as the Panthers combined for 32 kills (.426) and 14 aces while limiting Norwich to a -.188 attack percentage.
Plymouth State improves to 5-1, while the Cadets fall to 1-4.
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 3, Norwich 0
- Plymouth State (5-1)
- Norwich (1-4)
How it Happened:
- PSU opened play with three straight kills to snag an early lead, but the Cadets stayed close. A Norwich error snapped a 6-6 tie and jump-started Sousa's six-point run, which included a pair of aces and a booming kill from junior Sydney Riley (Haverhill, Mass.). Norwich briefly slowed the momentum, but Riley slammed another winner and Borriello Diaz's tough serving extended the margin to 21-8, to help close out a 25-9 win.
- Set two followed a similar script with the Panthers nursing a one-point lead early on. Senior Christa Imbriano (Wakefield, Mass.) ripped an ace as PSU built a 10-6 cushion before junior Danielle Emerson (Biddeford, Maine) went on a trademark service run with the offense clicking. Emerson notched a pair of aces and PSU piled up six kills during the spurt – three each from McKay and senior Annalyn Cahill (Mystic, Conn.) – as the lead expanded to 20-7. McKay and Cahill teamed up on a block to seal the 25-7 victory.
- Emerson opened the third set with a pair of aces as Plymouth State raced out to a 6-1 lead and never looked back. The Cadets got as close as three points (10-7), but a string of Norwich errors helped the Panthers pull away. Emerson closed out the set with another strong serving run before her kill wrapped up the match, 25-10.
By the Numbers:
- McKay led all players with 10 kills and hit .562 with two blocks.
- Cahill had five kills without an error (.417) and two blocks, while freshman Adriana Gauthier (Columbia, Conn.) added six kills (.444) in just two sets.
- Emerson posted match highs of 12 assists and five aces while chipping in three kills.
- Plymouth State hit .426 for the match, including .600 in the second set, and boasted a 75% sideout percentage, while the defense forced Norwich into more errors than kills in each of the three sets.
- The Panthers have won all 14 meetings between the teams, including 12 in straight sets.
Up Next:
- Plymouth State travels to WPI on Saturday for a trimatch with Wesleyan University and the host Engineers, with matches at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
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