Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

NEW PALTZ, N.Y. – The No. 2 State University of New York at New Paltz men's volleyball team extended its winning streak to 15 on Saturday during a non-conference tri-match at the Hawk Center, as the Hawks downed No. 15 Juniata College, 3-0 (25-18, 25-12, 25-17), before topping No. 7 Dominican (Ill.) University, 3-0 (25-16, 25-19, 25-21).
 
Dominican defeated Juniata, 3-1 (25-17, 25-19, 22-25, 25-18), in a neutral-site contest sandwiched between New Paltz's two matches.
 
New Paltz rises to 17-2 overall with the wins and next hosts Penn State Behrend and No. 13 New York University tomorrow at 11 a.m. and 4 p.m., respectively, as a part of a United Volleyball Conference (UVC) tri-match. Juniata drops to 7-10 overall with its losses and visits the defending national champion Stevens Institute of Technology next on Wednesday, March 16, at 4 p.m., while Dominican moves to 11-5 overall with its results next visits Ramapo College tomorrow at 12 p.m.
 
No. 2 New Paltz 3, No. 15 Juniata 0
 
In what was a rematch of a contest from two weeks ago that the Hawks won in straight sets, New Paltz had little trouble with the Eagles the second time around either, relying on an elite performance at the service line to prevail.
 
New Paltz posted 16 service aces to Juniata's four, and the Hawks hit .392 (29-9-51) for the match compared to the Eagles' .167 (19-12-42) hitting percentage. Juniata did fare better than New Paltz at the net defensively, though, finishing with a 5-4 edge in total team blocks.
 
Both teams traded points early in the first set, with neither side able to gain much separation from the other. Following a Hawk service error that gave the Eagles a 13-12 advantage, New Paltz rattled off eight unanswered points, during which senior middle blocker Christopher Husmann (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) landed three service aces, to capture a 20-13 lead. Juniata was unable to mount a comeback, and the Hawks took the first set, 25-18.
 
While Juniata nearly offset its serve receive in the first set with a .467 (8-1-15) hitting percentage, the Eagles were held to -.231 (4-7-13) hitting in the second in a lopsided victory for the Hawks. After Juniata answered a 3-1 New Paltz edge by scoring two straight points, the Hawks went on a 7-0 surge, and back-to-back service aces by senior outside hitter Andy Fishman (Cornwallville, N.Y./Cairo-Durham) gave New Paltz a 10-3 lead. The Eagles scored consecutive points just once more the rest of the set, and the Hawks emerged with a 25-12 victory in the second.
 
New Paltz jumped out to an 11-5 lead in the third set, but Juniata scored five of the next seven points to pull within three at 13-10. The Hawks put the set out of reach with a 4-0 scoring spree, as senior setter Christian Smith (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) buried a kill off a free-ball opportunity to pin New Paltz to a 17-10 advantage. The Eagles were unable to mount a comeback, as the Hawks clinched the match victory with a 25-17 triumph in the third.
 
Every Hawk in the starting lineup had at least two kills against Juniata, and junior middle blocker Steven Woessner (Massapequa Park, N.Y./Massapequa) led the way with seven kills and a .750 (7-1-8) hitting percentage. Smith dished out 21 assists, while Husmann landed five service aces. Defensively, sophomore outside hitter Anthony Bonilla (New Paltz, N.Y./New Paltz) and Smith defended four digs each, while Husmann tallied two total blocks (one solo, one assist).
 
For Juniata, junior middle blocker Kyle Seeley landed 10 kills and hit .500 (10-3-14), and he also contributed a team-high four digs.
 
No. 2 New Paltz 3, No. 7 Dominican (Ill.) 0
 
In what was easily one of the Hawks' best offensive performances of the season, New Paltz hit .500 (48-10-76) to put away a strong Dominican team in the nightcap.
 
New Paltz's .500 hitting percentage is its fourth-highest this season, and it marks just the first time this year that the Hawks have achieved a hitting percentage at or above .500 against a nationally-ranked team. The Hawks edged the Stars in service aces (5-1) and total team blocks (5-4), and New Paltz also posted 31 digs to Dominican's 16.
 
Dominican came out competing hard in the first stanza after a four-set win over Juniata, and a Hawk service error drew the Stars within a point of New Paltz (6-5). A kill and two service aces by junior opposite Joe Norman (Bay Shore, N.Y./Bay Shore) and a block assist by Husmann and Bonilla vaulted the Hawks out to a 10-5 advantage, and after the two sides traded points, New Paltz went on a 4-0 run to bring up set point at 24-15. A service error gave the serve back to the Stars, but Woessner clinched the 25-16 set one win with a kill.
 
Both sides battled early in the second set, but a six-point Hawk tear gave the home team a 15-8 lead. Dominican scored six of the next seven points to pull within two, but back-to-back Norman terminations gave New Paltz a four-point lead. The two teams traded points until the Hawks scored points off kills in the final four rallies of the set to claim the second, 25-19.
 
New Paltz led early in the third, but Dominican scored consecutive points four times to keep the third set close. After trailing 23-18, Dominican scored three of the next four points before Norman ended the match with a kill.
 
Norman had arguably the best match of his New Paltz career, landing a match-high 16 kills while hitting .667 (16-2-21). He also finished with five digs and three service aces. Woessner hit .500 (10-2-16) for the match, while Smith distributed 42 assists. Defensively, Bonilla collected 10 digs, while Woessner totaled three blocks (one solo, two assist).
 
Junior outside hitter Jeremy Royko and sophomore opposite Luke Spicer led the Dominican attack with eight kills each, while junior setter Alex Coyne handed out 24 assists. Spicer provided five digs, while Coyne and freshman middle blocker/opposite Adam Eboli collected two total blocks (one solo, one assist) each.