Potsdam, NY — The State University of New York at New Paltz women's lacrosse team rolled to its first win of the season Monday, defeating SUNY Potsdam (2-4 overall, 0-2 SUNYAC) on the road, 25-3.
 
The Hawks (1-1, 1-1) had 11 different goal scorers throughout the game with junior attacker Maddy Carullo and senior attacker Tara Bovich leading the way offensively, combining for seven goals and six assists. Amy Hofer and Katie Zito added four goals, one assist and three goals, three assists, respectively, to aid in the blowout.  

"We wanted to keep our standard very high and the great part of what we did today was that we shared the ball a lot and everyone did produce, so that is a really good thing to see on those fronts," said SUNY New Paltz coach Keith Detelj. "They are a very unselfish group. They want to see their fellow teammates succeed through everything. It's just a fun game to watch them find people success."
  The Hawks opened up the game on a 5-0 run with Hofer starting the rally just 30 seconds into the game, followed by goals from Kaitlyn Shaw, Bovich, Camryn Ryder and Shannon Brosnan. The Bears got on the board to end the run, but it was their only score for the next 40-plus minutes. Meanwhile, SUNY New Paltz continued to pile onto the lead as Carullo scored back-to-back goals, followed by a man-up goal from Hofer and Ryder's second of the day. Maddie Gillis got in on the action 23 seconds after Ryder's goal, following a draw control win by Keydy Espinoza. The Hawks netted five more by the first-half's end and took a commanding 15-1 advantage into the break.
 
SUNY New Paltz scored eight-straight to open up the second half before Potsdam netted its second of the game following a draw control win. Hofer won the ensuing possession for her team, as the visitors started slowing the pace offensively and patiently kept the ball moving. Zito capitalized with a score to push the game to 24-2. The Bears added one more after earning a free position opportunity with about seven minutes left, but Ella Malanga scored one more to solidify the 25-3 outcome, placing her free position attempt in the back of the cage for her first goal of the season.

The win marked the highest margin of victory over a SUNYAC opponent in program history. The Hawks edged the Bears in 2019 and 2018, 12-9 and 10-6, respectively and came away with a one-point overtime victory in 2017, 8-7. SUNY New Paltz, although capturing its first win of the season Monday following a narrow 18-17 loss at Cortland March 24, flexed some of their talent in the victory and their pursuit of coming out of the SUNYAC East. 

"We're taking it game by game of course and always looking for the process of getting better," Detelj said. "I think they have a good understanding of how hard they have to work to continue to put a really high standard and now compete for that type of championship."
 
The Hawks will face SUNY Potsdam one more time Thursday, when the Bears visit the North Turf Field to complete the home-and-home series. The opening draw is scheduled for 4 p.m.

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