Box Score Tournament WebsiteNEW PALTZ, N.Y. – On the second day of the United Volleyball Conference (UVC) Crossover No. 2 at the Hawk Center on Sunday, the No. 7 State University of New York at New Paltz men's volleyball team (17-5, 8-3 UVC) downed Hilbert College (4-15, 2-8 UVC) by a 3-0 (25-17, 25-22, 25-20) final. New Paltz finished out the crossover weekend with a 2-1 record.
The Hawks' match against Hilbert marked their 2013 UVC regular-season finale, but all of the other 11 conference teams have at least one league contest remaining. No. 1 Nazareth College has locked up the top seed for the UVC Tournament, which will occur from April 13-14. The No. 6 Stevens Institute of Technology, New Paltz and No. 9 New York University all could end up in a three-way tie for second in the conference should NYU beat Stevens when they play on March 22. New Paltz is 1-1 against those teams, having won against NYU and lost against Stevens. Either way, the Hawks have secured a top-four seed in the tournament.
New Paltz hit at a sizzling .471 clip against Hilbert, while the visiting Hawks hit just .254. The match featured an offensive showcase, with just 36 digs and six blocks between the two squads.
Junior outside hitter/setter
Brian Smith (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) led New Paltz with 12 kills and a .611 hitting percentage, while junior middle blocker
Dylan Rabidoux (Rochester, N.Y./Spencerport) came off the bench to contribute four block assists. Freshman setter/right side
Christian Smith (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) led a contingent of three Hawk setters with double-digit assist totals, as he dished out 19 assists.
For Hilbert, Adam Weaver floored 11 kills, while David Mellerski handed out 26 assists.
New Paltz has a 12-day layoff from competition before it travels down south for the Stevenson Tournament from March 22-23. While there, the Hawks will square off with Penn State-Altoona, Eastern Mennonite University and Stevenson University.
