The State University of New York at New Paltz women's lacrosse team continues to gain momentum with a remarkable five-game winning streak and looks forward to surpassing the program record in its third conference game against Fredonia State Saturday.
 
The most recent win came from a domineering triumph over Plattsburgh State Wednesday, 20-4. The game was defined by the Hawks' aggressive offence, who shot rapid fire at Plattsburgh's net. Eight different players registered goals throughout the game, including a first career goal by freshman defender Vivianna Scotti off a feed from senior attacker Taylor Russell. When Plattsburgh managed to gain control of the ball, SUNY New Paltz's defense proved impenetrable. Senior defensive midfielder Sarah Raynock enjoyed a season high of seven draw controls to match her career high that she set in the previous season against Elmira College. 
 "For the Fredonia game we're really excited, especially from last year's game. We have a lot to own up to," said Hawks sophomore defensive midfielder Megan Tornatore.
 
SUNY New Paltz has yet to record a win against the Blue Devils, but has slowly made advances to close the scoring gap in the past few years. The Hawks fell to the Blue Devils, 15-4 and 15-8 in the 2016 and 2017 seasons, respectively, and narrowly lost in last season, 16-15. *
 
SUNY New Paltz boasted improvement and proved it was evenly matched by forcing the game into overtime, but Fredonia gained control of the ball and scored the winning point with only four seconds left in the extra period. The Hawks hope to continue their improvement streak and finally overcome the Blue Devils in a long-awaited victory.
 
While SUNY New Paltz boasts a perfect 2-0 State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) record, Fredonia enters the game with an 0-2 mark, as well as 3-6 overall. The Blue Devils suffered debilitating loses against Oswego (2-23) and Buffalo State (7-23) to begin their conference season.
 
In order to secure their first win against Fredonia, the Hawks have simulated game play into practice. They pride themselves on the depth of their team; competitors find it difficult to pinpoint a singular strong player to concentrate one. As always, communication, clean stick work and making runs remain a focus.
 
"I think lately we've been really working on holding each other accountable, and just also just being there for our teammates on defense," Tornatore said. "We're working to make our teammates have plays - like the person next to me, we want them to make a play; [we're] playing for each other. It's going to lead us to a lot of success."
 
SUNY New Paltz (6-2 overall, 2-0 SUNYAC) celebrates its most successful season since 2012 (7-10 overall, 2-6 SUNYAC), as another victory would set program history for the most recorded conference wins, and would rival the 2012 and 2011 teams for highest overall records (both 7-10).

The Hawks will host Fredonia State Saturday at 12 p.m. on the North Turf Field. To stay up to date with everything #NPHawks be sure to follow us on Twitter at @nphawks, Instagram and Facebook at @newpaltzhawks, and subscribe to our Youtube channel, New Paltz Hawks.