Oswego, NY -- The State University of New York at New Paltz women's volleyball team claimed a 3-1 (16-25, 25-19, 25-21, 25-22) triumph over Oswego State Friday in a thunderous Max Ziel Gymnasium. The victory improves the Hawks' record to 8-7 overall and 3-1 in the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC), while the Lakers dropped to 12-6 overall (0-2 SUNYAC). 
 
"I am very proud of the grit and resilience our team showed tonight," said SUNY New Paltz coach Matt Giufre. "We battled point for point and played hard on every ball. Oswego is a very tough opponent and their block really impacted us and made it tough on Maddie [Van Pelt] but she willed herself to find a way to score and Kerri [Neville] and Demi [Herasme] were forces in the middle. Haley [Timarky] did a fantastic job setting the hot hand in each rotation and Katie [Steele] came off the bench in the fourth set and offensively is the reason we were able to come back along with Julie's [Greenspan] serving. Nicole [Fellone] and [Nicole] Cooke and Mia [Waddell] covered the floor really well defensively and kept a lot of tough plays alive. It was a total team effort and doesn't get any easier tomorrow, but we are very pleased to get this win."  The Hawks started set one falling early to the Lakers, 11-15 after a service ace from Skylar Bechard forced SUNY New Paltz to take its first timeout of the game. Oswego never lost momentum and continued to pile up points, as a kill from Melissa Lussier pushed a 14-21 mark and forced the Hawks to use their last timeout of the set. The Lakers finished the set strong and claimed a 16-25 set victory to gain a 1-0 advantage in the set. 
 
A kill from Herasme from Timarky built a 11-7 advantage to begin the second set. Coach J.J. O'Connell of Oswego called for a whistle to use his team's first timeout of the game. SUNY New Paltz continued to hold onto the lead after a kill from Van Pelt put the Hawks up 19-8. Another timeout from the Lakers was called, which led to a 6-2 run to cut SUNY New Paltz's lead to five at 20-15. The come-back halted there, as a bad set from Julia Flohr ended the second to give the Hawks their first set victory of the match, 25-19, and tied the game at one. 
 
Despite falling in the second set, the foes quickly compiled a 8-12 lead to start off the third as a kill from Melissa Lussier made SUNY New Paltz take its first timeout of the set. The Hawks rallied from a 17-15 deficit, as Heramse's kill gave the Lakers no other choice but to call for its first timeout of the frame. After regaining momentum, SUNY New Paltz never lost the lead and closed out the set strong. A kill by Van Pelt gave the Hawks a 25-21 set three win and 2-1 advantage over Oswego.
 
The Lakers started set four the same way as set three, quickly working on an 11-15 lead as SUNY New Paltz used a timeout after Oswego tallied four consecutive points. Following the timeout, the Lakers maintained a 12-18 advantage as Emily Costa's service ace forced another timeout from the Hawks. That did not stop the Hawks from giving up, as a block from Herasme helped cut Oswego's lead, 17-20, and the foes took its first timeout of set four. 

SUNY New Paltz's defense shut down every effort from the Lakers and made a tremendous comeback. Steele's kill handed the Hawks their first advantage of the set, 21-20, and Oswego used its final timeout of the game. SUNY New Paltz was unstoppable and completed set four with a 25-22 victory, as a kill from Van Pelt sealed the deal for the Hawks to capture a 3-1 victory. 

Friday's win over the Lakers extended SUNY New Paltz's winning streak over Oswego to 12. 
 
Van Pelt was the catalyst for the Hawks, leading her team with 17 kills, while hitting .246 with two blocks and 20 digs. Herasme followed offensively with 14 kills, hitting .344 to go along with five blocks. Timarky was two assists shy of a career-high, finishing with 47 assists on the night, while Fellone paced SUNY New Paltz defensively with a team-high 26 digs. The senior also eclipsed 1,000 career digs in the performance. 
 
The Hawks hope to keep the momentum rolling heading into Saturday as they battle SUNY Cortland in Whitney T. Corey Gymnasium. First serve against the Red Dragons is scheduled for 1 p.m. 
 
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