NEW PALTZ, N.Y. – After going 4-0 at the Springfield Invitational, including straight-set wins against the top two ranked teams in NCAA Division III, No. 1 Rivier University and No. 2 Springfield College, the top-ranked State University of New York at New Paltz men's volleyball team looks to continue its winning ways as the Hawks prepare to host the Stevens Institute of Technology in United Volleyball Conference (UVC) play on Wednesday, Feb. 19, at 7 p.m. and then non-conference Cairn University on Friday, Feb. 21, at 6 p.m.
RECORDS: New Paltz steps into Wednesday's match with a 15-1, 5-0 UVC record… Stevens owns a 6-3, 4-1 mark, while Cairn will head into its match against No. 14 Stevenson University on Wednesday with a 4-6 record.
SCOUTING THE HAWKS (15-1, 5-0 UVC): New Paltz left Springfield, Mass., Saturday last weekend as the Springfield Invitational title holders, going a perfect 4-0… The Hawks defeated the top two ranked teams in NCAA Division III Friday night (Feb. 14), first knocking off No. 1 Rivier, 3-0 (25-19, 25-18, 25-18, 25-18), before downing No. 2 Springfield College, 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-23)… On Saturday, Feb. 15, New Paltz racked up two more victories, defeating Johnson & Wales University, 3-0 (25-23, 25-15, 25-17), and then Bard College, 3-1 (21-25, 25-20, 25-20, 25-18)... Sophomore outside hitter
Tim Ferriter has hauled in a number of awards for his play during the Rivier and Springfield matches, earning UVC Player of the Week, Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) North Men's Volleyball Player of the Week and American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Men's NCAA Division III National Player of the Week honors... Freshman middle blocker
C.J. Borfitz (Inwood, N.Y./Lawrence) was named the UVC Rookie of the Week for the week ending Feb. 16, 2014... The Hawks earned their first-ever No. 1 ranking in program history on Tuesday, as they top the week four edition of the AVCA NCAA Division III Men's Top-15 Coaches Poll.
Against Rivier:
Ferriter led the attack with 10 kills, while sophomore setter
Christian Smith and junior setter
John Lutjen had 20 and 12 assists, respectively… Sophomore setter/defensive specialist
Kevin Nardone earned seven digs… Freshman middle blocker
Steven Woessner finished with three total blocks.
Against Springfield:
Ferriter finished the match with 17 kills in 26 total attempts, with just four errors, while Lutjen and
Christian Smith contributed 20 and 19 assists, respectively… Sophomore middle blocker
Christopher Husmann and Ferriter both had three blocks each.
Against Johnson & Wales:
A total of 12 student-athletes saw action for the Hawks in a well-balanced team effort… Husmann led the attack with eight kills while Lutjen and
Christian Smith dished out 19 and 12 assists, respectively… Senior libero
Victor Tuminelli contributed nine digs, and
Christian Smith notched four block assists.
Against Bard:
Borfitz and freshman middle blocker
Jake Roessler contributed 15 and 12 kills, respectively… Nardone ran a 5-1 offense while dishing out 50 assists and totaling five blocks… Tuminelli covered the court with 10 digs.
STATISTICAL LEADERS: Ferriter leads the team and ranks fifth in the UVC in kills per set (3.81)… He leads the team and ranks fourth in the UVC in hitting percentage (.401)…
Christian Smith dishes out a team-best 6.79 assists per set and ranks 10th in the conference in the statistical category… Senior middle blocker
Dylan Rabidoux leads the team and is second in the UVC in service aces per set with 0.53.
TEAM STATISTICS: New Paltz leads the UVC in kills per set (12.84)… The Hawks also lead the UVC in service aces (1.71 per set), hitting percentage (.311) and assists per set (11.93).
SCOUTING THE DUCKS (6-3, 4-1 UVC): No. 12 nationally-ranked Stevens won its fifth consecutive match of the season, sweeping Hunter College, 3-0, on Saturday, Feb. 15… Sophomore outside hitter Chris Vaughan led all attackers with 15 kills, hitting .500 while also contributing six digs, four blocks and three service aces… Junior setter Kevin Aeckerle dished out 20 assists and earned six digs… Sophomore setter John Eddins and freshman setter Scott Russell subbed in for a combined 11 additional assists… Freshman middle hitter Jordan Stuart registered four kills on five swings with no errors and junior libero Dylan Schlosser had a team-best eight digs.
STATISTICAL LEADERS: Stevens' players dot UVC statistical rankings… Sophomore middle hitter Daniel Smith leads the team and is ranked second in the conference in hitting percentage (.430), while Vaughan ranks eighth (.350)… Freshman outside hitter Gabe Shankweiler and Vaughan both rank in the top 10 for kills per set with 3.32 and 3.29, respectively, and Aeckerle ranks second in the UVC in assists (9.7 per set)… The Ducks have a solid defensive front with four players ranking in the top 10 in blocks per set: sophomore middle hitter Alexander Carpenter ranks second (1.20), Stuart ranks third (1.20), Smith ranks fourth (1.16) and sophomore outside hitter/setter Thomas Wright ranks tenth (0.93)… Schlosser and Aeckerle rank fifth and sixth in the UVC in digs per set, averaging 2.53 and 2.43, respectively.
TEAM STATISTICS: Stevens is the UVC leader in blocks per set with 2.81 while ranking second in digs per set with 10.35… The Ducks rank third in three statistical categories: hitting percentage (.261), assists per set (11.74) and kills per set (12.32).
LAST MEETING: New Paltz fell to then-No. 6 Stevens, 3-2 (21-25, 25-21, 21-25, 32-30, 15-13), in a semifinal-round match at the 2013 UVC Tournament on April 13, 2013... Details from that match can be found at the link below:
MATCH RECAP:
April 13, 2013
SCOUTING THE HIGHLANDERS (4-6): Cairn hosted a tri-match on Feb. 15 against Penn State-Altoona and York (N.Y.) College… Cairn first defeated Penn State-Altoona, 3-1 before losing to York College, 3-1.
Against Penn State-Altoona: Sophomore middle hitter Randall Colson led the team with 16 kills, six digs and four blocks… Junior outside hitter Ryan Garven contributed 15 kills and 10 digs… Junior outside hitter Josia Buss added 11 kills and nine digs… Senior setter Jon Wilson dished out 39 assists.
Against York: Garven finished with 16 kills, 10 digs and three blocks… Buss added 13 kills, and Wilson had 36 assists.
STATISTICAL LEADERS: Garven leads the team and ranks second in the Continental Volleyball Conference (CVC) in kills per set (4.05), and sophomore opposite Michael Emond ranks fourth in the conference in digs (2.47).
TEAM STATISTICS: The Highlanders rank fifth in the CVC in kills per set (9.5) and hitting percentage (.125) and sixth in the conference in assists per set (8.75), digs per set (7.25), service aces per set (0.50) and blocks per set (1.25).
LAST MEETING: On March 2, 2013, New Paltz swept Cairn, 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-16)… Details from that match can be found at the link below:
MATCH RECAP:
March 2, 2013
WHAT'S NEXT: New Paltz will return to play on Tuesday, Feb. 25, against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) at 7 p.m. in Cambridge, Mass… Stevens next competes at the Baruch Tournament, facing No. 14 Stevenson on Friday, Feb. 21, at 6 p.m. and then Emmanuel College and No. 2 Rivier University on Saturday, Feb. 22, at 10 a.m. and 12 p.m., respectively… Cairn will travel to Bennington, Vt., on Saturday, Feb. 22, to compete in an SVC tri-match against Daniel Webster College at 2 p.m. and then Southern Vermont College at 4 p.m.
COACHES: New Paltz is led by eighth-year head coach
Radu Petrus…Stevens is directed by head coach Patrick Dorywalski, now in his 28th overall season, and Cairn is instructed by third-year head coach Ben Fuller.
