PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Powered by an all-around effort, the UMass Dartmouth defeated Plymouth State University, 3-0 (25-21, 25-16, 29-27) in the championship of the Little East Conference Tournament on Saturday afternoon. The win for the second-seeded Corsairs marks their second straight conference championship title as they move to 23-6 on the season and punch their ticket to the 2024 NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season.
The Panthers, who were the top-seed, move to 25-4 on the year. UMass Dartmouth earned the conference's automatic qualifying bid and will find out their next opponent in the Big Dance during Monday's selection show at 1pm. Plymouth State still has hopes of an NCAA Tournament At-Large bid.
Opening set action was a back-and-forth affair as neither team owned much of a dominant lead through the majority of the frame. The Panthers opened up a 17-13 advantage on a strike by graduate student Nora Ryan, but three straight points from the Corsairs, including an ace from junior setter and captain
Sabrina Bordone, closed the gap to 17-16.
The home team continued to hold the advantage until a 6-0 run from the Corsairs – backed by kills from senior outside hitter and captain
Kate Wade, along with sophomore outside hitter
Ella Soutter pulled the visitors ahead 22-19. UMass Dartmouth continued to hold the edge, closing out the set win with back-to-back points from sophomore outside hitter
Allison Pate.
Second set saw the Corsairs come out firing, taking a 13-8 lead on a service ace from junior defensive specialist and captain
Emily Pogorelec. The Panthers cut the deficit to 17-12 on another Ryan kill, but back-to-back kills from both Wade and Pate saw the visitors take the set win and the 2-0 match advantage.
Third set action proved to be a wild affair as Plymouth opened a 12-8 margin early. UMass Dartmouth battled back to tie, combining for three tying points until emerging with a 20-17 lead on an ace from Wade and a kill from senior opposite and captain
Chelsea Sanker. Holding a 23-20 lead, the Corsairs saw the home team battle back once again – tying the match at 23-all.
In a battle to win for the Corsairs and a battle to survive for the Panthers ensued as the squads tied the set score four times to bring it down to a 27-27 score. Plymouth State made a costly error to give the Corsairs match point and senior middle blocker
Monika Kristjansdottir delt the final blow with the match victory.
Wade, who was named the LEC Tournament's Most Outstanding Player for the second straight season, led all players with 15 kills, committing just four errors on 47 attempts for a .234 percentage. She added three service aces with a block assist and 15 digs. Rookie right side
Olivia Seutter added 10 kills with just two errors on 33 swings for a .242 percentage – adding a block assist – while Pate had eight kills with two block assists and 18 digs. Pogorelec recorded a match-best 28 digs with four assists and an ace as sophomore setter
Skye Peters posted 19 assists with 19 digs.
