By Justin Rushia
With fresh talent and familiar faces, the Plattsburgh State women’s soccer team embarks on their season-long journey to bring a SUNYAC title to Cardinal Country. After losing eight starters to graduation and a first round loss last season, the Cardinals are eager to prove themselves.
Plattsburgh secured its ninth consecutive SUNYAC postseason berth and its third consecutive berth under head coach Whitney Frary last season. With Geneseo and Brockport leaving the conference, the Cardinals are poised to keep their streak alive.
Last season, Brockport made it to the SUNYAC Championship before falling to Cortland, and Geneseo beat Plattsburgh 3-0 in the first round of the tournament.
With Brockport’s and Genseo’s departure, Canton and Morrisville will take their place in the conference.
“Preseason has been great. We’ve been working hard, and the team is really in good shape. We were able to hit the ground running with a lot of different aspects, such as working on defensive and offensive concepts early on,” Frary said.
Despite their playoff streak, the Cardinals have yet to surpass the first round since the 2019 season.
Plattsburgh will have to find a new identity on the offensive side of the pitch after losing First Team All-SUNYAC forward Nora Fitzgerald and Second Team All-SUNYAC forward Avery Durgan. The two star forwards combined for 14 of the team’s 27 total goals, and their absence will be felt on the offensive third.
“We have a couple of first-year attackers that have played lights out so far. I think you’ll see a creative and dynamic attack this season,” Frary said. “Our junior class in the midfield has really stepped up.”
Rather than focusing on playing through their two All-SUNYAC forwards, the new Plattsburgh offensive approach will be more team-focused, with many players contributing to goals and playmaking.
“Other players have started to step up more, and with people having to fight for their spots — especially in the offensive third — players have had to showcase what they can do while in practice,” Granger said.
The Cardinal front line will consist of seniors Ella Santomassimo and Allison Brown; juniors Claire Bottjer and Sally Gilganic; sophomore Macie Bolton and first-years Leah Warren and Jenna McDonald.
Plattsburgh’s midfield this year will feature two of the team’s senior captains, Jessica Mare and Amanda Cohen. Alongside them will be junior transfer student Kelly Licata from New Paltz, who scored a game-winner against Plattsburgh during their matchup last season on Sept. 27, 2023
Like the attack, the midfield will feature a deep rotation of players including senior Catrina Maltes: juniors Hannah Myers, Jillian Bezio, Alexis Patrick and Kathy Peterson-Ross and first-year students Laci Roberts and Bailee Lafountain, who will all get a chance to prove themselves during the pre-season. Lafountain and Roberts were multi-sport star teammates at Northeastern Clinton High School.
“The back line has been the same since my sophomore year,” Granger said. “This season, it’s new people and a new design of play.”
The Cardinal defense will be a force to be reckoned with this season, with returning First Team All-SUNYAC goalkeeper Lauren Haley and Third Team All-SUNYAC defender Casey Granger. Senior Haley and graduate student Granger will bring experienced leadership to a Cardinal defensive rotation primarily comprised of underclassmen.
“It’s great to have Granger back again — she’s a smart tactical player who is unarguably the glue of the defense,” Haley wrote in a text.
Plattsburgh’s back line will consist of senior Mackenzie Lawless, sophomores Ellie Graney, Lia Parker, Maria Mauro, Grace Reeve and Keira Patrick and first-years Anni Schneider and Amy Crowley.
“We have a lot of potential starters, and we have a lot of depth,” Frary said.
Even though the Cardinals lost nine players to graduation, including Fitzgerald, Durgan, Kayla Meyers, Sophia Hatziyianis, Tara Bendsak, Katie Stevenson, Zoe Rice, Jessica Landman and Samantha Rachon, the team is still as close as ever, Granger said. The upperclassmen have made it their goal to make the team’s culture as welcoming as possible for the incoming underclassmen.
“I feel close with the first-years and all of the underclassmen under me,” Granger said. “We all look at each other as equals, and we’re a very close group of people on and off the field.
Plattsburgh’s goals this season go beyond just winning a SUNYAC Championship. The Cardinals have ambitions to make it to the NCAA Tournament, Coach Frary said.
The unranked Cardinals have opportunities to play a few top-ranked teams this season, such as conference rival Cortland, which made the tournament last year, and two top-25-ranked teams — William Smith College and the College of New Jersey.
If Plattsburgh can prove itself and take points away from these teams while also performing exceptionally well in their conference, it will have a shot at reaching the NCAA Tournament.
The Cardinals will kick off their season with the Stand on their Shoulders Invitational at William Smith College in Geneva, NY. They will first play the host team, No. 20 William Smith College, on Aug 30. Then Plattsburgh will take on No. 24 College of New Jersey on Aug 31.
“There’s been a lot of talk since we lost so many people last year, and people think we won’t be as good,” Granger said. “It would be huge if we came out stronger than anyone thought and proved them wrong.”
