BRISTOL, R.I. – For the second year in a row, the Plymouth State College women’s volleyball team captured the championship at the Roger Williams Tournament.
The Panthers went 4-0 in this year’s tourney last Saturday in Bristol, R.I., improving to 7-3 on the season. PSC defeated Regis College (3-1) and Mass. Maritime (3-0) in pool play, followed by a 3-0 win over Wentworth Institute of Technology in the semi-finals and an exciting 3-2 victory over Roger Williams in the title match.
Plymouth State took a 15-6, 15-11 lead in the championship match against Roger Williams, only to see the Hawks battle back to take the next two games, 15-12 and 15-13. RWU took a 4-0 lead in rally-scoring in the fifth and decisive game, but PSC rebounded to capture a 15-9 decision to earn the trophy.
In its inaugural season in 1996, Plymouth State captured the Roger Williams Tournament with a 5-0 record, including a victory over the hosts in the finale.
“We played very well during pool play, and in the semi-final match,” said PSC head coach John Garneau. “We seemed to lose it after the first two games of the final, and early in the fifth game, but we managed to pull it together in time.”
The Panthers had three members receive tourney honors. Senior captain Chantelle Renna (Belmont, NH) was selected Tournament MVP, and senior Joyce Pochily (Belmont, NH) and sophomore Veronica Mulholland (Billerica, MA) were chosen to the All-Tournament Team. Renna came up big in the championship match with a team-high 13 kills along with 11 digs and a pair of blocks. Pochily registered 10 kills and a team-best 24 digs, and Mulholland made 12 kills and 12 digs.
Also playing well for PSC were freshman setter Stephanie Spiridakis (Belmont, NH), who recorded 97 assists and a team-leading 46 digs in the tournament, senior Megan Swenson (New Ipswich, NH), who had 37 kills and 11 blocks, and freshman Anna Lingelbach (Center Harbor, NH), who made 18 kills and 18 blocks.
PSC, 7-3, has a home match at Foley Gymnasium Tuesday (Sept. 23) against Daniel Webster (7:00 p.m.) and a match Wednesday (Sept. 24) at St. Joseph’s College (7:00 p.m.), then participates in the Bowdoin College Tournament Saturday (Sept. 27) in Brunswick, Maine (9:00 a.m.)
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