Plymouth State volleyball continued its streak of perfection this Saturday, September 17th, by winning out the Little East Conference tri-match, held in The Murray Center of Rhode Island College.
PSU tacked on a pair of wins against their fellow Little East Conference opponents Eastern Connecticut State University (6-5, 0-2) and Rhode Island College (8-7, 1-1). Following this weekend’s success, PSU move to an 11-0 record and are now 2-0 in the division, which perches them on top of the LEC. The undefeated record marks the second best start in PSU Volleyball history. PSU’s first match was against Eastern Connecticut, where the team lost their first set of the year 23-25. After the uncharacteristic setback, PSU retaliated in grand fashion and never looked back, winning the next three sets 25-21, 25-17, and 25-22. Coach Moira Long commented on the comeback, “the most impressive part was that we started off a little slow, took a time out, started communicating and adapted on defense. We started to see a change afterwards.” Eastern Connecticut lost both its matches in the weekend, while PSU’s ensuing opponent Rhode Island College, split their matches 1-1. After PSU’s success against Eastern Connecticut, they dominated Rhode Island College in a three-set sweep, 25-13, 25-11, and 25-23. Senior Captain Eliza Badeau was named the LEC Volleyball Offensive Player of the Week for her captivating performance in the two games, making 23 kills in 36 attempts against Eastern Connecticut and 20 kills in 26 attempts against Rhode Island College. Badeau was ecstatic with the whole team’s performance, “This year we’ve become such a solid group, so we can really depend on one another. It’s been a big improvement this year.” The positive chemistry of the team is apparent to any spectator. Such chemistry has no doubt contributed to the team’s success, where Coach Long added, “I think [the success] stems from the hard work done in the spring, where we put an exorbitant amount of time and effort in.” Such effort has created a trust in one another, as Senior Captain Brianna Kleckner commented; “We all have confidence in each other.” The play of the team has become far more concise due to a concentration on the fundamentals, “the basic philosophy remains the same; play tough, pass the ball and play solid defense,” Long said. Even with the fantastic success thus far, Long doesn’t want to look too far into the season ahead. “Honestly, we’re trying so hard to take this one game at a time, one set at a time. We’ve got to ask ourselves what the next match is and how do we prepare for it.” Long and the Panther’s look to build on this week’s success when they play Western Connecticut at home this Saturday, September 26.