Box Score

NEW PALTZ, N.Y. – The State University of New York at New Paltz men's volleyball team (1-0) kicked off its 2013 season with a victory, downing 14th-ranked Hunter College (0-1), 3-0 (25-18, 25-14, 25-14), on Wednesday night in a non-conference match at the Hawk Center. It also served as Hunter's season-opening match.

New Paltz overwhelmed Hunter with a prolific attack, as the host Hawks hit at a .517 clip for the match. New Paltz was strong off the serve, too, with eight service aces. Hunter, meanwhile, hit .000 for the evening and floored three service aces compared to six service errors.

Hunter kept it close early on and even held a three-point lead at one point in the first set. After leading 11-9 in the first stanza, a Hunter service error, a Hunter attack error, a kill by freshman outside hitter Tim Ferriter (Rochester, N.Y./West Irondequoit) and a service ace by junior middle blocker/right side Brian O'Connor (Guilderland, N.Y./Guilderland) forced Hunter to relinquish the lead. It would never recapture it the remainder of the set, and it only led once more the entire night.

Ferriter filled up the stat sheet with 10 kills and an .833 hitting percentage, which went along with two service aces and three digs. Freshman setter/right side Christian Smith (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) and sophomore setter John Lutjen (Smithtown, N.Y./Smithtown West) split setting duties, dishing out 16 and 11 assists, respectively. Smith also had four service aces, while Lutjen boasted three digs and three total blocks.

For Hunter, Matthew Ng and Moshood Jinad tied for the team-high in kills with six apiece, and Stanley Martinez handed out a match-high 17 assists. Eric Lodde corralled a match-high four digs, while Martinez had a block solo.

New Paltz travels to Nashua, N.H., this weekend (Saturday, Jan. 26, through Sunday, Jan. 27) for the Live Free or Die Invitational, which is cohosted by Daniel Webster College and Rivier College. The Hawks' first match of the tournament will be against Daniel Webster on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.