Heartbreak

It's a funny feeling: Wanting your season to continue as long as possible, yet knowing that it can all end at any moment. All it takes is one loss and the ride's over.

This feeling sat in the back of everyone's mind as our bus traveled seven hours across the state to New Paltz for SUNYAC playoffs. Six teams gathered and only one would be guaranteed to move on. There was no reason to think it couldn't be us.

A beautiful tree we found outside our hotel

On the rainy Friday afternoon our opponent was Cortland. During the season we easily beat the Red Dragons in three sets, but we knew they'd been playing much better since then, so it would be no easy task to advance. With superb blocking and floor defense, they made the match very tough for us.

For one reason or another, our calm demeanor unraveled... and it wasn't coming back together soon. Cortland surprised us by winning the match in three sets: 25-21, 25-23, 25-18. It was heartbreaking to face the reality that this would be our last bus ride home.

We thank our three seniors for providing much of our inspiration. Your presence will be missed, but the words you shared after the match won't be forgotten by this group. Our 2014 season began today with the girls working hard: several Blue Devil players could be seen working on their pull-ups in the fitness center :)

We want to issue a big congratulations to Buff State for winning the conference and moving onto regionals. Another congratulations to New Paltz for earning an at-large bid to the regional tournament. Represent the SUNYAC well!