New Paltz, NY --The State University of New York at New Paltz men's volleyball team (6-1) hits the road Friday to face eternal rival Springfield College (7-1) at the International Volleyball Hall of Fame Morgan Classic. The Hawks will play another game on Saturday against the winner of Rivier University (4-0) and Stevenson University (7-3).
SUNY New Paltz was defeated in its opening United Volleyball Conference (UVC) match against Vassar College in a five-set thriller (25-21, 18-25, 25-18, 23-25, 12-15), but can't wait to prove it can face adversity.
"To drop that game against [Vassar] was heartbreaking for us, especially at home," said Hawks senior captain Matthew Grace. "But if we can go in there against Springfield it'll be huge for our at-large bid and get us back on track."
The Pride have been one of SUNY New Paltz's biggest rivals in recent years, as the two universities exchanged National Championship runs, the Hawks winning in '16 and '19, the Pride winning in '17 and '18.
"We are going to face adversity tomorrow," Grace added. "We know that [Springfield] is going to pack it out. With only one day of rest between the loss yesterday and the game [Friday], to win in that hostile environment would be a great showing."
Springfield is currently on a six-game winning streak, and hitting at .379 percent. SUNY New Paltz sits slightly lower, hitting at .312 percent. The atmosphere will be very intense as the Pride will play in front of a packed and raucous crowd, while the Hawks will have to battle nerves and serve well to earn the win.
Grace is poised to break the SUNY New Paltz all-time assists record in the next few games. The Hawks captain won First-Team All-UVC and AVCA Second-Team All-American last year with the Hawks' National Championship team. Sitting on 3,661 assists at the moment, the Holbrook, NY native is only 49 assists away from breaking the current record mark of 3,709, which will make him the Hawks all-time record holder.
SUNY New Paltz faces Springfield College at 6 p.m. on Friday and either Rivier or Stevenson on Saturday, time to be announced.
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