The SUNYAC quarterfinals haven’t treated the Buffalo State volleyball team very well in recent seasons.
For the second consecutive year, the Bengals’ season came to an end with a loss in the opening round of the playoffs when they fell to Oneonta in four sets last Thursday at Cortland.
“I think for some of the returners, losing in the quarterfinals two years in a row is especially hard on them,” Bengals’ head coach Maria DePeters said. “Knowing that they didn’t play at 100 percent against Oneonta, and knowing that if they did there is a really good possibility they could have come out with the ‘w’ in Cortland is really difficult.”
Oneonta, the third seed in the East division, won the first two sets 25-17 and 25-20. The Bengals (15-20) capitalized on a 9-1 run in the third set, winning 25-20, but couldn’t complete the comeback, losing the final set 25-17.
“It came down to mental toughness again, and we just could not serve receive. We could not get a passing game on whatsoever,” DePeters said. “When your passing game is off, you can’t generate an offense, so you’re always playing defense. You can’t win on defense alone.”
Sam Parente led the Bengals’ attack with 11 kills and also added five blocks. Chelsea Moore contributed 21 digs and Kelsey Bashore had a team-best 36 assists to go along with nine digs. Paige Ottaviano and Mary Naboi each had eight kills, and Sherell McLean added seven kills and five blocks.
“Our mental game was off during the match. We’ve definitely had games that we’ve played tougher in,” Bashore said. “It was a little mentally overwhelming for us because we wanted to win so badly. We had a few mental errors and it cost us.”
The Bengals jumped out to a fast start to the season. They went 4-0 in the first round of SUNYAC Pool Play in September, defeating Brockport, Geneseo, Oswego and Fredonia. The start was the best the program has ever had.
The second round of conference play didn’t go as well. The team went 2-2, dropping matches to Geneseo in four sets and Fredonia in three on the first day of the tournament. The Bengals came back on the second day and defeated both Brockport and Oswego in straight sets, solidifying themselves as the second seed in the division.
The season was highlighted by a list of record-breaking team statistics. Their second place finish is the highest the program has ever finished. The 6-2 conference record is also a new best for the school.
“We are really proud of what we accomplished this year and although we’re really disappointed about losing in the playoffs we have a positive attitude,” Bashore said.
Barring other departures, the Bengals will lose just one player heading into next season. Ottaviano, a senior, will graduate in May. Although she’s played a key role for the team, DePeters believes they can overcome her departure.
“(Ottaviano) was really a force and she really held her teammates accountable, but people are going to step up next year, and some of them already stepped up this year,” DePeters said, adding that Bashore and Moore will return as juniors next season and Parente will be back as a sophomore.
Ottaviano thinks that the team will fill the void that she leaves with her departure.
“They’ll have a good core coming back,” she said. “They’re going to have some good recruits coming in, and Coach Maria is going to take this team really far.”
Bashore said losing in the quarterfinals was very upsetting, but she thinks that the loss will make the team even more motivated to come out and win next year.
“Losing in the first round is definitely going to make us even hungrier next year,” she said. “We expected to go further than we did this year and we didn’t accomplish that. Next year is going to be even more of a fight.”
Tom Gallagher can be reached by email at gallagher.record@live.com.