NEW PALTZ, NY — The SUNY New Paltz Hawks Volleyball team hosted the Vassar Brewers on Wednesday night and claimed a 31-29, 30-23, 30-19 decision.
In game one the Hawks were down 29-26 until senior Kate Roche (Patchogue, NY) stepped up to serve. The Hawks pulled ahead 30-29 on a receiving error by Vassar and then clinched the 31-29 win as Vassar had four touches on the ball. Game two saw the Hawks jump out to a quick 5-0 start but soon it was a new game tied at 14 each. The game was tied several times with the last tie coming at 23-23. First year Stephanie Bova (Central Square, NY) controlled the serving for the Hawks as they earned the next seven points for the final score of 30-23. In game three Vassar was ahead 15-14 but the Hawks took control and executed well to earn the 30-19 win.
New Paltz was led by Franchesca Rodriguez (Schenectady, NY) with 17 kills on 33 attempts. Kim Clouston (Baldwinsville, NY) chipped in with 14 kills and 18 digs. Nicole Mercadante (Baldwinsville, NY) had 27 digs for the Hawks defense, while Bova handed out 38 assists.
Vassar was led by Alia Al-Khatib (Port Charlotte, FL) with 11 kills, 11 assists and 10 digs. Katie Newton (Santa Barbara, CA) finished with nine kills, nine digs while Sarah Potts (Bellevue, WA) added seven kills. Junior Amanda Hsiung (Takoma Park, MD) dished out 21 assists for the Brewers.
New Paltz drops to 15-3 on the season and will return to action on Saturday October 6th when they travel to Farleigh Dickinson at Madison for a weekend Invite. Vassar drops to 12-4 overall.
