Fredonia, NY – The State University of New York at New Paltz men's soccer team collected its first conference victory of the season Saturday after defeating hosting Fredonia State, 2-1.

The Hawks (6-5 overall, 1-2 SUNYAC) opened up the game strong and finally capitalized in the 31st minute to take a one goal advantage. Freshman Michael Horner played a ball into junior Kevin Doorley who found the back of the net for just the second time this season.

SUNY New Paltz carried a 1-0 cushion into halftime and took just five minutes into the second period to double down on the lead. Doorley registered his league-leading eighth assist to senior center back Luke Dole, who gave the Hawks a 2-0 advantage in the 55th minute. 
The Blue Devils (4-6-2, 1-3) netted one of their game-high 13 shots in the 85th minute to cut the deficit in half, but the Hawks' defense stayed firm and held on to the lead the rest of the way to cement the victory.

After two-straight losses in State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) play, including a tough 2-0 loss against Buffalo State Friday, SUNY New Paltz earned a much-needed three points heading into another tough road weekend Oct. 11 and Oct. 12 against Oswego State and SUNY Cortland.

"We looked good in the first half possessing much better and just struggling with the final pass, but we were definitely sharper and that gave us a few good chances to put one away," said Hawks coach Kyle Clancy. "Unfortunately, we struggled to keep that up in the second half and were a bit out-played. We know we are capable of better and while we are happy to come away with three points, we will be focused on improving in a few key areas next week to be more prepared for two tough games."

Doorley was the catalyst for SUNY New Paltz, coming away with a goal and an assist and leading his team in shots on net with three. Marc DePasquale played all 90 minutes in goal for the Hawks, faced seven shots and made six saves.

"Kevin was great today, really dynamic on the ball, great with movement off the ball and showed an excellent work rate for 90 minutes," Clancy said. "He was a big part of our success today and definitely helped us to earn those three points."

Next up for SUNY New Paltz is a 4 p.m. clash against the Red Dragons Oct. 11 at the SUNY Cortland Stadium Complex.

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