Box Score The State University of New York at New Paltz men's volleyball team continued to feed the hot hand in Ryan Cole and picked up their fifth straight United Volleyball Conference (UVC) win by defeating NYU in four sets 25-21, 25-21, 22-25, 25-17. Cole recorded a new season-high in kills for the third time in the last four games as his 26 kills helped the Hawks move to 14-5 overall and 5-1 in UVC play. 

With playoff implications on the line, both teams came out struggling offensively in the opening set. NYU recorded a -.105 hitting percentage while SUNY New Paltz was able to do slightly better with a -.091 percentage. Despite the poor offense, the Hawks found a way to execute down the stretch after head coach Radu Petrus called timeout up 19-18. Three errors from the violets and three kills from SUNY New Paltz gave the Hawks their final six points to close out the first set 25-21.

SUNY New Paltz made the adjustments in the second set as they drastically improved their offensive efficiency bumping up their team hitting percentage to .538. After getting down 3-0, the Hawks offense went on a tear for five straight points powered by three kills from Cole and two kills from junior outside hitter Nick Smith. Sophomore setter Matthew Grace continued to feed Cole as he went to Cole on three straight side-out points to hold the lead at 9-7. Senior co-captain Anthony Bonilla stepped up to the service line and powered down two straight aces to push the score to 11-7. However, NYU answered right back with a four-point run to tie up the set. SUNY New Paltz remained mentally tough and never let the Violets take the lead. 

After a nine-kill set against Nazareth College, Cole proved his ability to take control of a set once again by racking up an impressive 11 kills in the second set against NYU. Cole's 11 kills came on 13 attempts with two errors for a .692 hitting percentage.

With their backs against the wall, the Violets were able to bounce back in the third set for a 25-22 victory. SUNY New Paltz appeared to be in command of the set up 20-17 late, but NYU was able to mount a comeback and force a fourth set.

Grace turned to Cole again to start the fourth set as he recorded two straight kills to open up the set and then Grace followed it up with an ace to jump out to a 3-0 lead. However, the Violets stayed resilient and was able to take a 9-8 lead. The Hawks answered back a four-point run to force a timeout, but after an Alex Li kill, SUNY New Paltz put together an incredible run. Smith started the run with a side-out kill, but then he went back to the service line and ran seven points in a row to take a 20-10 lead. The massive run for the Hawks allowed them to walk away with the fourth set and pick up the crucial conference win.

Cole's 26 kills marked the third most in program history for kills in a three-set match, trailing Smith's mark of 30 set earlier this season. Cole swung 41 times with 10 errors for a .390 hitting percentage. Smith was the only other offensive weapon with double-digit kills tallying 10 on the day. Grace dished out a match-high 41 kills, but also chipped in five aces. The defense for the Hawks held all NYU hitters below a .250 hitting percentage.

SUNY New Paltz has now won nine of their last 10 games, but will have a major test when they take on No. 2 Stevens Institute of Technology tomorrow at 2:30 p.m.