State of the SUNYAC: Assessing VB talent, teams

By Collin Bolebruch

Having reported on SUNYAC sports for three years now, I want the sports section to expand beyond Plattsburgh. In this column, I will explore membership issues, rivals’ seasons and the conference the Cardinals call home.

SUNYAC volleyball’s 2024 season opened Oct. 2, and the games were a surprising statement as to the parity of the league — seven out of nine games ended in a sweep.

When Geneseo and Brockport — who finished a combined 13-5 last season — left the conference, two of six playoff spots opened up. Plattsburgh came out on top of a tight race for the sixth spot, at 3-6, winning a tiebreaker and finishing over two 2-7 teams.

The scramble for the bottom of the playoff picture will be exciting, and come down to the final games. In November, the tournament teams will be the ones which don’t drop bad games and win tiebreakers against competition.

CONTENDER

Far and away, the league’s best team and favorite is Cortland (13-5, 2-0). 

The Red Dragons seriously impressed in out-of-conference play, winning 37 sets and losing 16, against strong competition. Cortland hung around with two top-10 teams, Trinity (TX) and Johns Hopkins, in two out-of-state tournaments this year.

The Red Dragons have won both conference games so far, defeating Oswego and Canton in 3-0 sweeps, allowing 12 or less points in five of six sets.

When looking at last season’s final four, Geneseo and Brockport are out of the picture, and New Paltz is sitting at .500. At the moment, and I take no pride in saying this, the conference looks to be for Cortland’s taking. Different sport, same stuff.

PLAYOFF SQUADS

Morrisville (10-6, 2-0), Buffalo State (10-8, 2-0) and New Paltz (8-8, 1-0) will likely fill out the next three playoff spots.

So far, and moving forward, it has and will be hard to consider Morrisville teams as playoff caliber in its new leagues — but so far, volleyball seems to be the outlier. 

I knew the Mustangs would be hard to count out, after winning the NAC and losing just two conference games in 2023, but I didn’t think they’d be 10-6 and sweep both Oswego and Canton. If the Mustangs can continue to hang athletically, and not drop bad games, they’ll finish with a top-4 playoff seed.

New Paltz is a good contender to return to the playoffs this season. The Hawks had a rough go in non-conference games, going 7-8, but they’ve played quality teams to prepare for SUNYACs.

In its first game, New Paltz swept a below-average Oneonta. With a foot in the door, I think the Hawks have what it takes to stay on their feet through the regular season and find a nice seed in the playoffs.

Buffalo State, the fifth seed last year, has shown this season why it can associate with the best of the SUNYAC. In the early non-conference games, the Bengals defeated Geneseo 3-2 and split games with Brockport 2-3 and 3-0.

In the two games so far, Buffalo State defeated Potsdam 3-1 and Plattsburgh 3-0 and denied the Cardinals at least 10 points in two sets. 

The Bengals have shown they’re legit and should cruise to a SUNYAC playoff berth.

ON THE BUBBLE

Potsdam (8-4, 1-1), Fredonia (8-12, 1-1) and Oswego (10-10, 1-2) all look frisky to take the last two playoff spots.

After finishing 0-9 in-conference last season, I was ready to count Potsdam out. But after an 8-4 start, including three sweeps, the Bears have soundly entered the playoff picture.

Potsdam has been the only team to play four games against conference opponents, with just two counting as SUNYAC games. In the early games, the Bears defeated Plattsburgh 3-1 and lost to Canton 1-3. The Bears split again last weekend, opening SUNYACs losing to Buffalo State 1-3 and beating Fredonia 3-2.

If Potsdam can avoid losing to worse teams, it could have a place in the playoffs.

Fredonia has played an interesting non-conference schedule, playing 12 of 19 games in Pennsylvania. If the Blue Devils split from the SUNYAC, at least we know where they’ll defect to. 

Those games offered diverse competition, and Fredonia went 7-11, including a 1-3 loss to Geneseo.

In conference games so far, Fredonia defeated Plattsburgh 3-0 and lost to Potsdam 2-3. If the Blue Devils can flip tight contests, they could see the playoffs.

Oswego might have the best chances of these three to make the postseason.

The Lakers posted a 9-8 record through challenging non-conference play, winning 31 sets to 28 losses. Oswego faced Geneseo, sweeping last year’s third seed — indicating it could be in good standing in the conference.

In its first two conference games, the Lakers have been swept twice by Cortland and Morrisville — not exactly easy pickings. The loss to the Mustangs was close, losing sets by five, four and two points. Oswego then picked up a close five-set win against Canton.

If Oswego fares well against Buffalo State or New Paltz, it could enter the next tier.

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN

Canton (8-9, 0-3), Oneonta (7-11, 0-1) and Plattsburgh (3-13, 0-2) are the odd teams out, with a steep climb for a playoff berth.

Canton had a reasonably impressive non-conference stretch, winning against losing teams and losing to winning teams — good for a first-year head coach. Canton lost to Brockport, last year’s fourth seed, in a sweep and beat Potsdam in five.

In conference games, Canton was swept by Cortland and Morrisville in two of its worst offensive games of the season. Its loss to Oswego was hopeful, but if it can’t turn those games, Canton is stuck in this tier. The only path the Kangaroos have to the playoffs is turning wins over other teams of its caliber with a surprise win or two.

Oneonta may be the best of the teams in this category, but just hasn’t gotten much opportunity to prove itself. The Red Dragons exited non-conference play without any impressive wins, but kept its conference loss to New Paltz competitive. 

If Oneonta plays perfectly, it could leap Potsdam and Fredonia for a playoff spot.

Plattsburgh earned its first playoff bid in a decade last season. Over the offseason, its top player, Payton Zophy, graduated and its head coach, Kelsea Healis, resigned. 

With a new leader, Eimile O’Brien, and no senior class, the Cardinals seem to be rebuilding. Establishing a culture and developing underclassmen is a great sign for the future, but it’s hard to see it turn into quality wins this season.

Plattsburgh was swept seven times before SUNYACs and lost to Potsdam 1-3 in the opening tournament. Sweeps from Fredonia and Buffalo State since shows an upward battle to the playoffs. 

But, after losing two sets by three points against the Blue Devils, it shows the Cardinals can be feisty.

WEEK AHEAD

This week features a few opportunities to really gauge talent — Cortland faces Potsdam, Morrisville faces Plattsburgh, Buffalo State faces Oneonta and Fredonia faces New Paltz.

It is still early, and the picture is not clear whatsoever, but the playoff seeding will come down to matchups of teams in the same tier. Last season, Plattsburgh’s appearance came down to an early season win against Oswego — maybe we’ve already seen that tiebreaker.