With the cancellation of spring sports due to COVID-19, the Fighting Tiger Athletic Department will be the reviewing the 2019-20 seasons of all SUNY Cobleskill athletic teams that competed during the academic year.
 
Fighting Tiger Women's Volleyball 2019 Season Recap

Entering the 2019 season the Fighting Tiger women's volleyball team was looking to improve on a 2018 campaign that saw the team post a 7-16 overall record including a 4-6 mark in North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) play.

With an experienced core group returning Head Coach Scott Hill struck an early optimistic tone heading into the year.

"With our added depth and athleticism, we are going to be able to do more things offensively and defensively which should make us a much more difficult match-up for opponents. I'm excited about the things we are going to be able to do on the court this season from a coaching perspective. " 

Cobleskill opened the year at the Elms College Blazer Invitational hosted by Elms College in Chicopee, Mass. In their opening match the Fighting Tigers posted an impressive 3-1 decision over the Falcons of Albertus Magnus College by set scores of: 19-25, 25-18, 25-19 and 25-16. Cobleskill then closed the day by losing a 3-0 decision to the Lakers of Oswego State College by scores of: 25-7, 25-16 and 25-10. By virtue of the split the Fighting Tigers open the season with a 1-1 overall record.

Junior setter Maleigha Ellithorpe, Cazenovia, N.Y., Cazenovia High School/Onondaga Community College, quarterbacked the win with 28 assists, 11 digs and four service aces while senior right side hitter Regan Hubner, Miller Place, N.Y., Rocky Point High School, chipped in a team high of eight kills to go with 11 digs. Senior libero Mikayla Catherman, Marietta, N.Y., Marcellus High School, was active with 27 digs to go with a pair of service aces with sophomore middle hitter Jillian Nitchman, Ballston Spa, N.Y., Ballston Spa High School, adding six kills, three total blocks and four digs to the team's victory totals.

The closed the tournament with a 3-0 loss to tournament host Lightening of Elms College in their final game of the tournament by scores of 25-22, 25-14 and 25-19. With the loss the Fighting Tigers fall to 1-2 overall on the season.

For her play at the event, Mikayla Catherman was named to 2019 Blazer Invitational All-Tournament Team by the tournament's coaches and event staff.  

The team then took to the road to post a hard fought 3-0 non-league victory over the Spartans of Castleton University by set scores of: 25-20, 25-18 and 25-19.

Junior setter Maleigha Ellithorpe, Cazenovia, N.Y., Cazenovia High School/Onondaga Community College, was exceptional running the offense in the hard hitting affair posting a match high of 29 assists to go with six digs and a pair of service aces on the night.

Upfront, Cobleskill made good use of Ellithorpe's passing skills as sophomore middle hitter Jillian Nitchman had 12 kills with only one attack error while senior right side hitter Regan Hubner, Miller Place, N.Y., Rocky Point High School, notched nine kills to with three service aces. Senior outside hitter Katerina Weingarten, Carlisle, N.Y., Cobleskill-Richmondville High School, was also active up front with eight kills to go along with three digs.

The Fighting Tigers next swept the field at a triangular meet hosted by the Lyons of Mount Holyoke College on Saturday afternoon topping the Blue Jays of the University of St. Joseph, Connecticut 3-1 by set scores of: 25-19, 25-21, 23-25 and 25-22 then out clawing the host Lyons of Mount Holyoke in five sets 3-2 by scores of: 13-25, 25-17, 25-20, 19-25 and 15-8.
The Cobleskill defense was stellar in the opener posting a season high of 99 digs in four sets led by senior libero Mikayla Catherman had a match high of 27 digs while senior outside hitter Katerina Weingarten chipped in a team high of 10 kills to go with 11 digs.

Sophomore middle hitter Jillian Nitchman was also factor in the victory with eight kills, two service aces and a solo block with junior setter Maleigha Ellithorpe continuing her strong quarterbacking of the attack with 35 assists and 11 digs in the win.

In the victory over the Lyons, Ellithorpe was all over the court leading the way with 22 assists, five service aces, three digs and two kills while Catherman continued her strong play with 22 digs and three service aces. The Orange & Black also received important contributions from sophomore outside hitter Sarah Bates, Cobleskill, N.Y., Cobleskill-Richmondville High School, who had a team high of seven kills to go with six digs and from senior right side hitter Alyssa Boyles, Pine Plains, N.Y., Pine Plains High School, who had three kills, three service aces, an assist and a dig in the win.

With the wins the Fighting Tigers improve to 4-2 overall running their winning streak to three matches.

The Orange & Black then opened the NEAC season at home by falling to the Wildcats or SUNY Poly 3-1 by set scores of: 16-25, 10-25, 25-19 and 12-25.  

Cobleskill returned to their winning ways quickly crossing the state line into Massachusetts on to post a 3-0 over the host Wildcats of Bay Path University by scores of: 25-13, 25-11 and 25-14 in non-conference action.

Senior outside hitter Regan Hubner lead the assault for Cobleskill at the net with 11 kills to go with two assists and a service ace on the evening while setter Maleigha Ellithorpe, quarterbacked the offense to perfection with 30 assists, two service aces a kill and eight digs on the evening.

Libero Mikayla Catherman continued her stellar play on defense for the Orange & Black with 22 digs on the evening to go with a kill and two service aces as 18 different Cobleskill players contributed to the road victory.

The Fighting Tigers then were hit with the injury bug and dropped their next three road matches losing in league play to Keuka College scores of 3-0 by set scores of: 25-13, 25-21 and 25-17 then closed out the event by losing a non-league affair Houghton College Highlanders 3-1 by set scores of: 25-13, 25-19, 22-25 and 25-14 at Keuka then losing at home to the visiting Gators of Sage College 3-1 by scores of: 25-16, 25-15, 22-25 and 25-22.

Cobleskill ended the losing streak by a 3-1 victory over the host Pioneers of Utica College in non-league action by set scores of: 25-20, 25-16, 17-25 and 25-22. With the win the team ended an eight match losing streak to Utica which dated back to October 8 of 2013.

The Fighting Tiger defense was the key to the win as the visitors racked up 105 digs and 14 total blocks on the evening. Led by the libero tandem of junior defensive specialist Megan Gass, West Monroe, N.Y., Central Square High School/Finger Lakes Community College, who racked up 20 digs, an assist and a service ace on the night and senior Mikayla Catherman who had a game high 23 digs to go along with two assists and two service aces.

After dropping a NEAC match at home to The Express of Wells College by a 3-0 margin in set scores of: 25-17, 27-25 and 26-24.

Following the loss to Wells was a three-game winning streak starting with a win over the visiting Wildcats of Bay Path University by a 3-1 win at the Iorio Gymnasium in non-league play by scores of: 25-7, 25-11, 23-25 and 25-13. The team was led by Mikayla Catherman who posted a season high of 33 digs in the match to go with eight service aces and a kill on the evening while junior middle hitter Rachel Burke, West Winfield, N.Y., Mt. Markham High School, chipped in five kills and four solo blocks on the evening.

Next up was a 3-0 home win over NEAC rival over Cazenovia College by scores of 25-22, 25-20 and 25-17. Setter Maleigha Ellithorpe led the way to the win with 29 digs, eight digs, three kills and three service aces on the evening while middle hitter Rachel Burke added a match high of nine kills.

The team then worked overtime to close out the home stand coming from behind to defeat the visiting Raptors of Liberty League member Bard College 3-2 by set scores of: 20-25, 21-25, 25-16, 25-19 and 15-12. After falling behind 2-0 after the first two sets the Fighting Tigers staged a major rally taking sets three and four then coming from a 5-1 deficit in the deciding fifth set to claim the victory.

Once again the front line proved to be formidable down the stretch for the Orange & Black as middle hitter Rachel Burke had nine kills and four solo blocks on the evening.
After losing a pair of NEAC road games to the Bison of Gallaudet University 3-1 by scores of 26-28, 25-10, 25-14 and 23-25 then fell to the host Chargers of Lancaster Bible College 3-0 by scores of 25-13, 25-22 and 25-20.

The team then returned home to take a 3-0 decision over the visiting Spartans of Castleton University in non-conference action by set scores of: 25-20, 25-10 and 25-12.
The Fighting Tiger front line dominated play throughout the match as middle hitter Rachel Burke led the way with eight kills and eight total blocks while middle hitter Jillian Nitchman added six kills and a pair of service aces to the team's victory totals.

Cobleskill then stepped back into NEAC action splitting a pair of conference matches at a conference triangular event hosted by SUNY Polytechnic Institute.

The Fighting Tigers opened the event by losing a 3-0 decision to the Nittany Lions of Penn State Berks by scores of 25-12, 25-20 and 25-12 then closed the day's action with a 3-1 victory over the Wildcats of Penn College by set scores of: 20-250, 25-20, 25-15 and 25-14.

Once again the Cobleskill front line provided stellar production during the matches as middle hitter Jillian Nitchman had 14 kills, eight total blocks and four of service aces in six sets played while outside hitter Katerina Weingarten added 11 kills and three digs in five sets played.

The Orange & Black then closed out the home portion of their schedule in style on "Senior Night" with hard fought 3-2 non-league win over the visiting Broncos of SUNY Delhi by set scores of 23-25, 28-26, 25-23, 23-25 and 15-3.

The Fighting Tiger senior class led the way to the victory over one of their oldest rivals as Cobleskill traded runs and extended volleys with the visitors until the third set when they broke the contest open with a 10-to-1 run to open the fifth set.

Senior setter Alyssa Boyles, Pine Plains, N.Y., Stissing Mountain High School, led the way with 15 assists, nine digs, six kills, four assists, and a service ace while opposite side hitter Regan Hubner chipped in six kills, four assists, five digs and a solo block. Outside hitter Katerina Weingarten was also a major factor in the win with eight kills and five digs on the evening.

Defensively libero Mikayla Catherman had 35 digs on the night to go with three service aces and an assist with senior outside hitter Megan Brewer, Riverhead, N.Y., Riverhead High School/Suffolk Community College, adding four kills and six digs in front of the home fans.

However over the next weekend the injury bug resurfaced in mass as the Fighting Tigers lost a pair of NEAC matches at a conference triangular event hosted by the Nittany Lions of Penn State Abington.

Cobleskill opened the event by a 3-0 decision to the Nittany Lions of host Penn State Abington by scores of 25-13, 27-25 and 25-11 then ended the day's action with a 3-0 loss to the Nittany Lions of Penn State Harrisburg by set scores of: 25-11, 25-17, and 26-24.

Fighting Tiger libero Mikayla Catherman averaged 4.33 digs per set in six sets played for Cobleskill on the day.

The team closed the non-league portion of their schedule by dropping a 3-1 decision to the host Trailblazers of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) by set scores of 23-25, 25-18, 25-16 and 25-11.

Mikayla Catherman, Marcellus, N.Y., Marcellus High School, turned in a strong effort for the visitors with 26 digs, eight service aces, four digs and a kill on the evening while Rachel Burke, chipped in five kills and three total blocks in a losing effort.

Cobleskill then closed the year by losing a 3-0 decision to the host Mustangs of Morrisville State NEAC action by set scores of 25-21, 25-18 and 25-8. With the loss the Fighting Tigers closed the campaign with a 12-14 overall record including a 2-9 mark in NEAC play.

Setter Maleigha Ellithortpe led the team with 20 assists to go with eight digs and a kill on the evening while outside hitter Regan Hubner closed her career with a six kill/five dig effort.
Individually the NEAC coaches selected senior libero Mikayla Catherman to the All-NEAC Third Team.

According to Fighting Tiger Head Coach Scott Hill, Catherman was most deserving of the honor and a key to the team's improvement this season.

"Mikayla is the epitome of the modern college libero in that she can: dig, pas and serve," said Coach Hill. "Our consistency in the back row this season allowed us to be more aggressive in the transition from defense to offense which allowed for a quicker and smoother attack which is a direct result of Mikayla's efforts on the court and a major reason for our improvement this year."