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ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The No. 15 State University of New York at New Paltz men's volleyball team (5-6) found itself on the winning end of a marathon of a five-set match, as the Hawks topped No. 8 Medaille College (9-2), 3-2 (21-25, 25-19, 25-21, 23-25, 22-20) in its first match of the two-day Nazareth Tournament on Friday. The Hawks then lost to No. 3 UC Santa Cruz (3-5), 3-1 (18-25, 25-19, 14-25, 23-25), in the nightcap.

New Paltz dealt the Mavericks just their second loss of the young season. Their first setback of the 2011 campaign came by means of a 3-0 loss to UC Santa Cruz earlier in the afternoon.

The Hawks lost the first set, 25-21, against Medaille but rebounded with a 25-19 victory in the second frame. New Paltz went on to win the third, 25-21, but was unable to finish the Mavericks in the fourth, as they forced a fifth set by winning the frame, 25-23. In a 15-point deciding fifth set, neither team was able to put away the other until New Paltz secured the match victory by landing the 22nd point. The Hawks won the set, 22-20.

Junior opposite Mike Van Tyne (Rochester, N.Y.) and junior middle blocker Kevin Stross (Port Washington, N.Y.) paced the Hawk attack with 14 and 12 kills, respectively, while senior setter Andrew Cassius (Brooklyn, N.Y.), senior outside hitter Keith MacDonald (Monroe Township, N.J.), senior setter/opposite Jakub Chleboun (Prague, Czech Republic) and Van Tyne all had five digs. Stross and senior middle blocker Jonathan Van Dyke (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.) and Stross were busy on the front row defensively. Stross had two block solos and five block assists, while Van Dyke boasted five block assists. As a team, New Paltz amassed 15 total blocks. Cassius handed out 26 assists, while Van Tyne recorded three service aces.

UC Santa Cruz lived up to its billing in the nightcap, as the Banana Slugs moved to 2-0 on the weekend. They won the first set, 25-18, but the Hawks leveled the tally at 1-all with a 25-19 triumph in the second. The Banana Slugs grounded New Paltz in the third with a 25-14 win, and they finished off the Hawks with a 25-23 victory in the fourth frame.

Stross led New Paltz with 12 kills and achieved a .333 hitting percentage, while Cassius dished out 26 assists. Cassius headlined a strong all-around team defensive effort with eight digs, and junior defensive specialist/libero Frank Ciccone (Long Beach, N.Y.) and MacDonald followed suit with seven and six digs, respectively.

Nazareth Tournament play resumes tomorrow, as New Paltz meets up with fourth-ranked Nazareth College at noon before ending the weekend with a 2 p.m. match with Thiel College.