Cardinal Clips: Issue 7

Women’s rugby climbs ranks

Plattsburgh State women’s club rugby, ranked 20th in Division III, defeated No. 6 Clarkson University at home 22-7 on Oct. 19. The win extended the team’s home season, and the Cardinals will now take on SUNY Geneseo in the playoffs at the field behind Sibley Hall at 11 a.m. on Sunday.

Women’s rugby is 5-0 on the season and has outscored opponents 148 to 66. The win against Clarkson boosted the team’s ranking to No. 8 by National Collegiate Rugby. 

If Plattsburgh defeats Geneseo (4-1), the team will play the winner between Clarkson and No. 10 Niagara University. A game against Clarkson would be at home, while a matchup with Niagara (5-0) would be on the road.

If the Cardinals win both games, they qualify for regionals in Virginia in November. If the team wins this week and loses next week, they would travel to regionals in Ohio.

MRUG set for postseason matchup

Plattsburgh State men’s club rugby (4-2) has qualified for the postseason, and is set to play St. Lawrence University (4-2) on the road in the first round 1 p.m. Saturday.

The Cardinals overcame a slow, 1-2, start to the season by winning three straight to earn a playoff berth. Plattsburgh has accumulated a point differential of 164 to 134.

Men’s rugby played St. Lawrence on Sept. 21, losing 33-34. St. Lawrence has scored 261 points this year, the most in the conference, and allowed 103, the second-least.

If Plattsburgh defeats St. Lawrence, it would play the winner of Hamilton College (5-1) and Clarkson University (4-2).

USCHO ranks Cardinals hockey

U.S. College Hockey Online has published its Division III rankings ahead of the 2024-25 season. Plattsburgh State men’s hockey debuted at No. 9, and women’s at No. 6 — both the highest among SUNYAC teams.

Men’s hockey finished last season 21-5-2 and spent multiple weeks ranked No. 1 during the fall semester. Plattsburgh lost the SUNYAC Championship to Cortland at home and narrowly missed receiving an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Cortland is ranked No. 13.

The SUNYAC preseason poll has Plattsburgh at No. 1, Oswego at No. 2 and Cortland at No. 3. The Cardinals open their season on the road against VTSU-Castleton on Nov. 1.

Women’s hockey went 22-5-1 last season, ranked among the top six for the entire season, though it was the first time the team had dropped below No. 4 since 2012. The Cardinals lost the SUNYAC Championship to Cortland at home, then the first round of the NCAA Tournament at home to Middlebury College. Cortland is ranked No. 10.

The SUNYAC preseason poll reached a tie, with Plattsburgh and Cortland both at No. 1. Plattsburgh plays No. 14 Norwich at home in its season opener Nov. 2.

WBB publishes 2024-2025 roster

Plattsburgh State women’s basketball released its 2024-25 season roster this week, featuring 16 players, including six first-years.

The Cardinals finished last season 10-14, 7-11, just one win outside of the playoffs. This year, Plattsburgh looks to return to the postseason for the first time since 2015 in a reshuffled conference.

Additions to the team include five rookie guards from New York: Meredith Bush from Gouverneur; Katie Cunningham from Heuvelton; Kayla Johannesen from Hyde Park; Tori Russo from Schenectady; and Emily Smith from Greenville.

Plattsburgh adds one forward in Kaelyn Morgan from Chateaugay, New York.

Players not returning include Ady Darnold, Ella Franklin and Bri Brousseau. Mya Smith graduated and also will not play.

Returning guards include junior Jaden Wilson and sophomores Selma Deisz, Julia Greek and Lauren LaFountain.

Wings on the team again are: senior All-SUNYAC Third Teamer Payton Couture, junior Kathy Peterson-Ross and sophomore Felicia Caarls.

Forwards back for another year are: sophomores Kassidy Flayter and Rosie Sculco.

Anchoring the defense at center is junior All-SUNYAC Third Teamer Imani Walcott.

The team welcomes Grace Jolicoeur, a Plattsburgh State student from Plattsburgh, as team manager, replacing the graduated Caitlin Kolesar.

The team opens its season on the road against Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on the road Nov. 8.

MBB publishes 2024-2025 roster

Cardinals men’s basketball published its 2024-25 season roster this week, featuring 18 players, including seven new players.

Plattsburgh earned its first playoff berth in six seasons last year and came one play away from advancing to the semifinals. With a large incoming class, the Cards are gearing up for a deeper run.

The team’s additions include three first-years: forward Colin Harting from Hohen Neuendorf, Germany; wing Nate Pondexter Jr. from Washington, D.C. and guard Jaiden Gladney from Charleston, West Virginia.

Two newcomers played in New York junior colleges last season: sophomore forward Wol Machteng from NJCAA Division III Cayuga Community College in Auburn and junior guard/forward Damari Johnson from NJCAA Division III Tompkins Cortland Community College in Dryden.

Junior forward Irwayne Connell Jr. last played college basketball at NJCAA Division III Monroe Community College in Rochester, New York in 2018-2019, and started at NCAA Division II St. Thomas Aquinas College in Orangeburg, New York in 2017-2018.

Junior guard Kareem Welch was a NJCAA Division II All-American and All-Region XV Player of the Year when he last played at SUNY Sullivan in Loch Sheldrake, New York in 2021-22. He started his career at NJCAA Division I Odessa College in Odessa, Texas in 2019-20.

Returning guards include: seniors Franklin Infante, Matthew Kone-Bradshaw, Kevin Tabb and Sasha Vidrini and junior A.J. Williams Jr.

Wings back for another year are: seniors Ikechukwu Ezike and Jeremiah Love-Smith and junior Jeremy Jolly.

Forwards on the team again are: seniors Orlando Dawkins and Ladan Graves.

Sophomore center Aidan McGuire returns for another season at center.

Not on this year’s roster are: graduates Willard Anderson Jr., Tim Thomas, Dylan Trombley and Darren Wright. Junior Ankush Malhotra is also not returning.

Trombley will serve this season as assistant coach, replacing Travis Rice.

The Cardinals’ season tips off against Skidmore College at home Nov. 8.

VB loses out over road trip

Plattsburgh Cardinals volleyball (3-18, 0-7) finished 0-3 this past week in SUNYAC games.

First, the team traveled to Canton (10-12, 1-4) on Oct. 18, where it lost all three sets to the Kangaroos. The scores of the sets were 15-25, 20-25, 19-25. 

Plattsburgh continued its road trip with its next stop at Oswego (12-10, 3-2) on Oct. 19. The Cards once again lost all three sets, ending their road trip winless. 

The Cardinals finished off their away SUNYAC season with a competitive matchup against Potsdam (11-8, 3-4) on Wednesday. The Bears came away with the first set, winning 25-11. The Cardinals bounced back in set two with a 25-22 win. The back-and-forth trends continued with Potsdam taking set three 25-14 and Plattsburgh taking set four 25-22. Coming down to the last set, the Cardinals couldn’t carry their momentum from set four, losing their final set 10-15. 

Plattsburgh continues its season tomorrow, when it travels to Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. The Cardinals play Bowdoin College and Husson University in non-conference games.

XC runs in final 2024 invitational 

Plattsburgh cross country traveled to Connecticut College for its final invitational before the SUNYAC Championship meet. The race featured several strong teams from the Northeast, with eight teams among the top 30 in the country. 

The men’s team finished 31st in the 8000-meter blue race. Five of the seven Cardinals posted personal bests, including Michael Brockway, Sam Faga, Brody Olden, Erik Kucera and Denali Rodriguez-Garnica.

The women’s team finished 36th in the 6000-meter race. The top three performers for the Cardinals include Sarah Smith, who finished first for Plattsburgh and placed 205th overall, Grace Estus, who placed 230th and Lillian Moran, who finished 251st.

The Cardinals participate in the SUNYAC Championship on Nov. 2 at Oswego.