SUNYAC WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT 
Friday, Nov. 14, 2025 – Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025
Corey Gymnasium – Cortland, NY

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE…
Friday, Nov. 14:
SEMIFINAL 1 – 4:00 p.m.: #5 BUFFALO STATE BENGALS AT #1 CORTLAND RED DRAGONS
SEMIFINAL 2 – 6:30 p.m.: #3 NEW PALTZ HAWKS VS. #2 OSWEGO LAKERS
Saturday, Nov. 15:
FINALS – 4:00 p.m.: SEMIFINAL 1 WINNER VS SEMIFINAL 2 WINNER

FOLLOW ALONG…
LIVE STATS
VIDEO
PROGRAM

TICKET INFORMATION… 
-Online Ticketing Only 
-SUNYAC students with ID are free
-Semifinals Ticket Link
-Finals Ticket Link

SEMIFINAL MATCHUP… Top-seeded Cortland hosts fifth-seeded Buffalo State in the semifinals of the 2025 Women's Volleyball Tournament on Friday evening at Corey Gymnasium.  
 
After winning its fifth consecutive SUNYAC regular-season title with a 9-0 record in league play, Cortland looks to make it five straight conference tournament crowns. As the top seed, Cortland earned a bye into the conference semifinals and the right to host the conference tournament semifinals and finals. 
 
Cortland is 18-3 against Buffalo State since 2007, including riding an 11-game winning streak over the Bengals dating back to 2015. In those 11 meetings, Buffalo State has won just three sets, and has not forced a fifth set in any of the matches. 
 
The sides will also be facing off in the conference tournament for the second consecutive season, and for the fourth time since 2012. Cortland defeated Buffalo State by 3-0 sweeps in the championship game in both 2024 and 2012, while the Bengals defeated the Red Dragons in the semifinals in 2013 and in the quarterfinals in 2014. 
 
The Red Dragons are in search of a fifth conference tournament title in head coach Erin Glickert's sixth season of competition. Cortland has the most conference titles of any school in the SUNYAC, with 23 since 1984. 
 
Buffalo State reached the conference tournament for the fifth consecutive season under head coach Maria Roberts. The Bengals are searching for their second conference title overall, and first since 2013. 

THE PATH FORWARD… The winner of Friday's semfinal between Buffalo State and Cortland will advance to face the winner of the other semifinal that features third-seeded New Paltz and second-seeded Oswego. The championship game will be played in Corey Gymnasium at 4 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, with the winner receiving the conference's automatic qualifier into the NCAA Division III playoffs.
 
Oswego earned a bye into the conference semifinals after a second-place finish during the conference regular season with a 7-2 league mark. The Lakers are in search of their first conference title all-time, and are making their second straight appearance in the conference tournament. 
 
New Paltz is looking for a fourth conference crown all-time, and first since 2018. Each of the Hawks' previous three SUNYAC titles came under the guidance of head coach Matt Giufre, in 2009, 2014, and 2018. New Paltz has also qualified for the NCAA Division III playoffs six times under Giufre. 
 
SUNYAC WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT BRACKET 

LAST TIME WE MET… Cortland overcame a loss in the opening set to defeat visiting Buffalo State, 24-26, 25-21, 25-19, 25-14, in the last meeting of the sides on October 3, 2025. 
 
Kira Pirrera (Hauppauge/Smithtown West) finished with 14 kills and eight digs, Erica Arroyo (Nesconset/Smithtown West) totaled career highs of nine kills, seven aces and three blocks, and Emalee Ballou (Eden) ended with eight kills and three blocks for the Red Dragons. Lauren Millspaugh (Trumansburg/Charles O. Dickerson) had six kills and a career-best seven blocks, Sanaiya Whitted(Poughkeepsie/Franklin D. Roosevelt) finished with seven kills and a career-best tying five blocks, and Anna Lynch (Rochester/Our Lady of Mercy) led the team with a career-high tying seven blocks.
 
Also for the Red Dragons, Samantha Rodriguez (Camarillo, CA/Adolfo Camarillo) and Melissa O'Connor (Hauppauge) each dished out 22 assists, with Rodriguez serving three aces and O'Connor two. Sarah Taggart (Buffalo/Williamsville South), playing in her first match of the season, ended with nine digs and two aces, and Alyssa Rich (Rochester/Churchville-Chili) led the team with 14 digs.
 
Buffalo State was led by Ella Wittman's 10 kills, Nicole Delli Colli's nine kills, and Autumn Flanders' nine digs.
 
Cortland finished the match with 15 blocks, which helped the Red Dragons limit the Bengals to a .086 team attack percentage. Cortland also recorded 15 aces to Buffalo State's three. Cortland finished the night with a .167 attack percentage, including a .409 mark (13 kills, four errors in 22 attempts) in the fourth set.
 
Buffalo State's victory in the first set was the first time Cortland lost a set to a SUNYAC opponent since the 2023 SUNYAC Tournament semifinals versus Brockport.  The set was tied eight times, including every step from 20-20 to 24-24 before kills by Wittman and Delia Lake gave the Bengals the win.
 
The second set was tied 17-17 before four straight Cortland points on kills by Millspaugh, Pirrera, Whitted and Lynch made it 21-17. The Bengals were within 23-21 before an error and an O'Connor ace evened the match. Cortland took a 4-0 lead and never trailed in the third set, although Buffalo State was within 9-8 before the Red Dragons went on a 7-1 run. Cortland took control of the fourth set early with a 6-1 run that turned a 7-5 lead into a 13-6 advantage.
 
THE CORTLAND CAPSULE… Cortland began the season with a 1-2 record after dropping a pair of matches to defending national champion Juniata and Swarthmore at the Swarthmore Invitational. The Red Dragons then returned home to claim the Red Dragon Tournament with wins over Hartwick, Bowdoin, and Rochester. After a 1-2 weekend at the Scranton Invitational, Cortland rattled off 11 consecutive victories to move to 16-4 overall and 5-0 in league play. The Red Dragons dropped matches at home to Ithaca and Stevens, then finished off the regular season with six wins in their final seven matches to enter the conference tournament with a 22-7 record. 
 
Cortland is led offensively by junior Kira Pirrera, who has a team-high 405 kills. Emalee Ballou has chipped in 274 kills, while Lauren Millspaugh has 203 kills and a team-best .379 attack percentage. Running the offense have been setters Melissa O'Connor and Samantha Rodriguez, who have 483 assists and 372 assists, respectively.  

On defense, Millspaugh is a force at the net, registering 96 blocks on the year. Sanaiya Whitted has pitched in 61 blocks and Anna Lynch has 59 blocks. Alyssa Rich has a team-high 462 digs, which ranks her second in the SUNYAC. 
 
FORCING ERRORS… Cortland is ninth in the nation in opponent hitting percentage, at 0.096. A major reason for the lack of production by opponents is Cortland's stellar defense at the net, which ranks 16th nationally in total blocks and 22nd in blocks per set.
  
THAT'S THE POINT… Kira Pirrera leads the SUNYAC, and ranks 16th nationally, with 482.5 total points on the season. Her points per set mark of 4.64 is second in the conference and 26th in the country. *Points are calculated by adding the total number of kills, service aces, solo blocks, and 0.5 (block assists)  
 
HOME SWEET HOME… Since 2021, the Red Dragons are 54-6 in matches in Corey Gymnasium, a home winning percentage of .900 during that stretch. Cortland is also 12-2 this season at home.  
 
PUTTING IT TO THE FLOOR …  Lauren Millspaugh's .379 attack percentage leads the SUNYAC this season and is also 14th nationally. If Millspaugh can maintain this percentage through the end of the season, it would be the fifth-highest attack percentage in a single season in program history.

SUNYAC WEEKLY WINNERS… Cortland has claimed SUNYAC weekly awards 12 times during the season. Three different Red Dragons have received SUNYAC Offensive Athlete of the Week honors, while three Red Dragons have also won SUNAYC Defensive Athlete of the Week recognition. Kira Pirrera has been named SUNYAC Offensive Athlete of the Week four times, on Sept. 8, Sept. 22, Sept. 29, and Oct. 14. Emalee Ballou received the honor on Nov. 3 and Lauren Millspaugh earned the award on Nov. 10. The SUNYAC Defensive Athlete of the Week has been won by Alyssa Rich three times, on Sept. 8, Oct. 6, and Nov. 10. Meanwhile, Millspaugh earned the nod on Sept. 29 and Oct. 14, and Anna Lynch was honored on Sept. 22. 
 
THE COMPETITORS… Fifth-seeded Buffalo State advanced to Friday's semifinals with a five-set victory on the road at Fredonia on Tuesday evening in the SUNYAC First Round. The Bengals are 15-15 on the year, and had a 5-4 record during league play, including dropping matches to Cortland, Oswego, and New Paltz in four sets. 

Buffalo State's top offensive weapon is Ella Wittman, the sister of former Cortland setter Meadow Wittman, who is now the assistant coach for the Bengals. Wittman has provided 393 kills on the year, along with 41 service aces. 
 
Oswego sports a 19-8 record entering Friday's semifinal, with a 7-2 record in league play. The Lakers also had victories during the regular season over Buffalo State, in four sets, and New Paltz in a sweep, but were swept by the Red Dragons in Oswego. 
 
The Lakers are the top team in the conference in digs per set, at 17.43. They also lead the SUNYAC in total attempts per set. Oswego setter Mya Bush leads the conference with 8.76 assists per set and 850 total assists on the year. 
 
New Paltz sports a 16-13 record into play on Friday after a three-set sweep over Morrisville in the SUNYAC First Round. The Hawks were 6-3 during league play, with a win over Buffalo State and two sweeps at the hands of Oswego and Cortland.
 
New Paltz is lead defensively by Jordyn Lewis' 305 digs, while Lewis has also contributed a team-high 47 aces. Kim Braun has added 39 aces and leads the team with 619 assists, while Courtney Meyer has 38 aces and is second on the Hawks with 282 digs. 

SCHEDULES/RESULTS (click team to access online schedules)…

CORTLAND RED DRAGONS: 22-7 (9-0 SUNYAC)
BUFFALO STATE BENGALS: 15-15 (5-4 SUNYAC)

OSWEGO LAKERS: 19-8 (7-2 SUNYAC)
NEW PALTZ HAWKS: 16-13 (6-3 SUNYAC)