Despite coming of its third win of the season Nov. 26 against a talented Vassar College team, the State University of New York at New Paltz was ready to get back to practice this past week and improve of an un-even game.
 
"One thing that coach has said constantly is that we are trying to play our best game in the very last game of the season," said Hawks senior forward Philesha Teape. "No matter who the competition is we are looking to play our best game and give our best effort and be as close to perfect — which is not the best word — but be as close to that as possible. Limit the mistakes, limit the lapse of focus, that is what we reiterate to ourselves constantly throughout the season. No matter who it is we are going to give it our all and we are going to leave it all out there on that court."
SUNY New Paltz (3-1 overall, 0-0 SUNYAC) through four games has shown glimpses of the potential it has for this season, eyeing another trip back to the NCAA Tournament to make a run at the program's first national championship. First, the Hawks have to get through conference play and they start Friday and Saturday at home against two teams — SUNY Potsdam and Plattsburgh State — they have yet to lose to in nearly half a decade.
 
"We expect their best game," said Teape said. "We just want to come out hard. It's our first conference games of the season and we expect them to give us their all and we're coming in ready to play, and ready to give our all as well. It doesn't matter what happened in the past with these teams and us beating them. This is a new game. We're going to come out strong and we're going to do the best we can."
 
Neither the Bears nor Cardinals made the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) tournament last season, but both teams do return the bulk of their roster.
 
Potsdam finished 8-16 last year, including 5-13 in SUNYAC play and enters the matchup against SUNY New Paltz at 2-3. The Bears most recently earned a 66-61 win on the road against St. Lawrence University more than a week ago on Nov. 23.
 
They bring back last year's leading scorers in Dyamon Hunter and Devyn Elliott who are both back for their sophomore seasons. Hunter paces the offense, averaging 19 points per game, while Elliott is not far behind, totaling 18.2 points, along with a team-leading 12.2 rebounds per game.
 
Potsdam has averaged nearly 69 points per game through five outings, but has given up 73 points a contest to opponents, while allowing just 37 percent shooting from the field. The Bears have struggled in turnover differential, averaging nearly 19 turnovers per game, while causing 76 on the season for about 15 a contest.
  Plattsburgh will face SUNY Oneonta before playing the Hawks Saturday, but entering the weekend, the Cardinals are also 2-3 after most recently splitting their two games of their own Cardinal Classic Nov. 22 and 23, earning a 63-35 win over Purchase before falling, 76-61 to Hamilton College.
 
The Cardinals ended 2018 with a 10-15 overall record and 7-11 in SUNYAC, while bringing back leading scorer Taylor Durnin for her senior season. However, Plattsburgh's offense has struggled to start the year, averaging just 56 points per game as a team, while shooting just 34 percent from the floor. Sophomore guard Kayla Doody leads the team with 8.6 points per game, followed by Durnin who has put up about eight points and five rebounds a contest. Defensively, Plattsburgh has given up less than 59 points per game, while keeping its opposition shooting just 33 percent from the field, including 27 percent from 3.
 
The Hawks are led by their four seniors: Teape, Marion Dietz, Paige Niemeyer and Maddie Van Pelt. Niemeyer scored a team-high 18 points against the Brewers, but Dietz has been the catalyst offensively for the majority of their short season, averaging a team-best 20.4 points per game. Teape has had a career-year thus far, recording 14.3 points and 11 rebounds per game with her three-game double-double streak snapped after pulling in a team-high nine rebounds against Vassar.
 
"Personally, I feel good. I feel really confident in myself. I feel like this is my year," Teape said. "I feel like I've taken these last three years prior and I've learned so much. I've grown and I've had excellent seniors before me, and sophomores and juniors before me teach me so much. This is the year where I am just putting it all out there and leaving with whatever I have left to give to this program. Make sure that we come out solid and we leave behind something that is great for this upcoming freshmen class, because we have such a big class, and the one junior that we have to come back with something that is great."
 
Freshman Maddie Gillis earned her first start in SUNY New Paltz's latest game during its home-opener and produced career-high's in points (13), shots made and attempted (6-10), rebounds (six) and minutes played (34).
 
As a team, the Hawks are totaling about 71 points per game, shooting nearly 39 percent, including 30.7 percent from behind the arc. Defensively they have allowed on average 68.5 points against, allowing the opposition to shoot 45.5 percent from the field and 36.7 percent from 3-point range.
 
"I feel like this team and this program has always been the type of program that wants to win and just do the best we can," Teape added. "Just dominate at every position we can, but I think the difference for me and the other three seniors is that we're seniors now. We have so much experience and because of that experience we're coming out with so much urgency. We want it and we're thriving to get another conference championship."
 
SUNY New Paltz is set to take on the Bears Friday for a 5:30 p.m. tip-off, and then will face the Cardinals Saturday in the Hawk Center at 2 p.m.

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