Box Score

MAHWAH, N.J. – In its final regular-season match of the 2012 season, the State University of New York at New Paltz men's volleyball team (19-10) topped Ramapo College (18-12) in a five-set thriller, winning, 3-2 (21-25, 25-22, 22-25, 27-25, 17-15), on Wednesday night in non-conference action. Sophomore setter/outside hitter Brian Smith (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) ignited the Hawk attack with 21 kills and a .333 hitting percentage.

Three other Hawks reached double-digit kill figures. Senior opposite Mike Van Tyne (Rochester, N.Y./Rush-Henrietta) floored 14 kills, while sophomore outside hitter Victor Tuminelli (Dix Hills, N.Y./Half Hollow Hills West) and sophomore outside hitter Brian O'Connor (Guilderland, N.Y./Guilderland) had 10 each. Sophomore setter Misa Garo (Bronx, N.Y./Cardinal Hayes) dished out a match-high 56 assists, and O'Connor was strong off the serve with three service aces. Defensively, Smith, Tuminelli and senior libero Michael Dauernheim (Bay Shore, N.Y./Bay Shore) boasted 13, 12 and 11 digs, respectively, while O'Connor and Van Tyne each had one block solo and four block assists.

For Ramapo, Colin McNeal led the offense with 21 kills, and Andrew Balint handed out 53 assists. Aaron Kerschner fortified the back row on defense with a match-high 17 digs, while Paul Konopacki was also strong with 16 digs. Joel Castro had five total blocks (one solo, four assist) to reinforce the front row defensively.

Ramapo hit .276 for the match compared to the Hawks' .258 clip, while each team had 10 blocks. Both sides were equal in service aces (5) and were near equal in digs, with New Paltz collecting 53 and Ramapo notching 51.

Ramapo won the first set with relative ease, taking it, 25-21, but New Paltz won the next stanza, 25-22. The Roadrunners put the Hawks on the ropes with a 25-22 win in the third frame, but New Paltz fought to a 27-25 triumph in the fourth stanza to force a deciding set. The two sides engaged in a defensive battle in the fifth game, and New Paltz wound up winning, 17-15, to take the match.

The Hawks own the No. 7 seed in the 2012 United Volleyball Conference (UVC) Tournament and will face the second-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology on Saturday, April 14, at 3:15 p.m. on the campus of New York University in the quarterfinal round.