NEW PALTZ, N.Y. - After sweeping Ramapo in straight sets on Wednesday evening, the No. 3 State University of New York at New Paltz men's volleyball team begins United Volleyball Conference (UVC) crossover play, starting this Saturday, Feb. 14 at Penn State-Behrend as the Hawks take on No. 12 Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the host Lions.
RECORDS: New Paltz is currently ranked third in the country and hold a 4-1 overall record, 1-0 home record, and 2-1 away record…..MIT enters the weekend with a 7-1 overall record, 4-0 at home, and 3-1 away record….Penn State-Behrend is currently 5-2 overall with a 1-0 home record and 3-1 away record.
SCOUTING THE HAWKS (4-1): The Hawks had their first home match of 2015 against Ramapo College this past Wednesday and came out with a 3-0 win… Junior setter
Christian Smith led the way for the Hawks with a match-high seven kills, a .788 hitting percentage, nine assists, five blocks, and three service aces… Junior middle blocker
Christopher Husmann had a match-best five block assists on the night… Senior setter
John Lutjen tallied a team-best 14 assists, and senior setter/defensive specialist
Misa Garo had six assists in the third set alone… New Paltz led the whole way during the match in hitting percentage .300 compared to Ramapo's .032… The Hawks also had 22 total blocks in the night victory.
STATISTICAL LEADERSKills:
Anthony Bonilla (2.95 per set), Husmann (2.58 per set), Smith (1.95 per set)
Hitting Percentage: Husmann (.474), Bonilla (.370), Woessner (.296)
Assists:
Misa Garo (6.00 per set), Smith (5.47 per set),
John Lutjen (5.21 per set)
Service Aces: Woessner (0.42 per set), Smith (0.32 per set), Bonilla (0.26 per set)
Digs: Steven Gassert (4.00 per set),
Kevin Nardone (2.26 per set), Bonilla (1.37 per set)
Blocks: Wossener (1.05 per set), Smith (0.84 per set), Husmann (0.84 per set)
TEAM STATISTICS: The Hawks are currently ranked third in the UVC for hitting percentage (.288) and second for assists per set (11.89)… New Paltz is also second in the conference in both kills (12.63 per set) and blocks (2.47 per set).
SCOUTING THE ENGINEERS (7-1): The Engineers are coming off a home weekend sweep against Newbury College (3-0) and Emerson College (3-0)… Freshman Jack Serrino led the way for the Engineers during their defeat over Newbury College with .875 hitting percentage, three blocks, and two aces… Sophomore Sean Kropp also helped the Engineers with the victory with a .467 hitting percentage, 10 kills and two aces… A dominate match high, eight-dig performance by sophomore Jordan Lucier uplifted the Engineers to the three-set sweep… During the Emerson College match, Brendan Chang tallied 37 assists for the Engineers… Senior Alex Klein racked up 14 kills, a .367 hitting percentage, six digs, and five blocks… The last time the Engineers and Hawks met, MIT defeated New Paltz in a tough five setter… During this last match-up, the Engineers had 17 total blocks to the Hawks 11.
STATISICAL LEADERSKills: Alex Klein (3.58 per set), Martin Krasuski (2.75 per set), Serrino (2.62 per set)
Hitting Percentage: Serrino (.358), Andrew Busse (.300), Klein (.277)
Assists: Steve Lonhart (11.33 per set), Chang (10.13 per set)
Services Aces: Tom Leech (0.67 per set), Lonhart (0.33 per set), Chang (0.30 per set)
Digs: Krasuski (2.54 per set), Lucier (2.42 per set), Suyash Fulay (2.00 per set)
Blocks: Serrino (1.31 per set), Klein (0.88 per set), Busse (0.82 per set)
TEAM STATISITICS: The Engineers are currently ranked fourth in the UVC for hitting percentage (.264) and second in assists per set (12.00)… MIT is first in the conference with kills (13.16 per set) and blocks (2.61 per set).
LAST MEETING: In the last match between the Hawks and the Engineers, the Hawks were defeated 3-2 in a tough five setter on February 25, 2014.
SCOUTING THE LIONS (5-2): Over the weekend, the Lions beat Penn State-Altoona 3-0… Two different Lions posted double-digit kills during Sunday's match with Josh Oertly posting 11 and Eric Theiss recording 10… In the first set alone, the Lions had 11 kills giving them the edge in the opening set… The Lions pulled away from Altoona by going on a 6-0 run in the third set to secure the win… Freshman Ryan Robida recorded a team-best 22 assists, while Mitch Farabaugh added 16 helpers in the victory… The Lions had a total of 30 digs, four aces, eight blocks, and a .235 hitting percentage for the weekend contest… The last time these two teams met, the Hawks led in hitting percentage (.410 to.106) and held a 9-3 edge in service aces.
STATISTICAL LEADERSKills: Trenton Munk (2.50 per set), Theiss (2.46 per set), Oretly (2.42 per set)
Hitting percentage: Munk (.346), Oretly (.248), Ty Sheehan (.216)
Assists: Farabaugh (5.85 per set), Robida (4.70 per set)
Service Aces: J.T. Lippert (0.33 per set), Farabaugh (0.19 per set), Oretly (0.19 per set)
Digs: Polishen (2.92 per set), Sheehan (2.69 per set), Farabaugh (1.54 per set)
Blocks: Munk (1.27 per set), Kevin Kaplon (0.50 per set), Oretly (0.50 per set)
TEAM STATISTICS: The Lions are first in the UVC in opponent hitting percentage (.122) and third in opponent blocks (1.42 per set)… Penn State-Behrend is currently second in the conference for digs (10.88 per set) and third for opponent digs (11.23 per set).
LAST MEETING: The Hawks and the Lions last met on March 8, 2014 and the Hawks took a 3-0 victory.
WHAT'S NEXT: The Hawks will travel to Hoboken, New Jersey to face No. 1 Stevens Institute of Technology on Feb. 18….MIT hosts Southern Vermont College on Feb. 17…Penn State-Behrend travels to Hilbert on Feb. 17.
