The St. Lawrence University volleyball team topped the Plattsburgh State Cardinals in three sets, by scores of 25-17, 31-29 and 25-22, to post a 3-0 match win on day one of the Plattsburgh State Invitational on Friday night in Plattsburgh, New York.

Natalie Piper led the Saints with 14 kills and three service aces, while Marissa Parker and Grace Kelly recorded six and five, respectively. Reagan Collier-Hogan recorded a team-best 14 digs, Ally Good assisted on 17 plays and Mac Barnes posted five blocks for the Saints.

The Cardinals took off to an early 5-3 lead over the Saints in the first set, but the Saints rallied to tie the set at 10 with a kill from Kelly. Plattsburgh continued to edge the Saints 14-13, but a 6-1 run put the Saints up 20-16. St. Lawrence sealed with five consecutive points, capped by a kill from Marissa Parker.

Both teams battled point-for-point in the second set, tying the score three times, before the Cardinals increased their lead to 13-7. An attacking error from Megan Hyde brought the Saints within one (16-15), but that didn't stop the Cardinals from taking a 22-15 lead. A 5-1 run by the Scarlet and Brown tied the set at 24 and after five more ties and extra points, the Saints rallied for a 31-29 win off kills from Piper and Annika Kreppein.

Plattsburgh jumped out to an 11-6 lead in the third set on an attacking error from Julia Wagner. The Saints rallied and a kill from Kelly gave the Saints a 17-16 lead. St. Lawrence finished the set 25-22 when Jenna Britton set up Piper for the final kill.

"Plattsburgh served very aggressively and had us out of system most of the night," said head coach Shelly Roiger. "Fortunately our second and third contacts had our passers back and did their job to improve on the previous contact. As a result, we were able to grind out a very gritty win. Our toughness and composure at the end of set two was outstanding and this team continues to prove their confidence and composure in high pressure situations. We'll see two excellent and athletic opponents tomorrow, which is exactly what we need for the upcoming Liberty League weekend. We will need to bring our best performance of the season and there's no doubt that tomorrow will be a day of growth no matter what the scoreboard shows."

Michelle Simmons, Ann Beauchamp and Hyde led the Cardinals with seven kills each, while Maddy Zophy recorded seven digs, Lauren DeVoe recorded 21 assists and Simmons finished with seven service aces.

The Saints edged the Cardinals in kills (40-27), assists (36-24), digs (38-26) and blocks (7-2), while Plattsburgh held a 10-9 edge in service aces.

With the win, St. Lawrence moved to 15-7 on the season, while Plattsburgh fell to 6-16.

The Scarlet and Brown will face Gordon College and Worcester Polytechnic Institute on day two of the Plattsburgh State Invitational tomorrow afternoon. Match times are set for 12 p.m. and 2:30 p.m., respectively.