TROY, NY — The State University of New York at New Paltz women's soccer team was unable to get their first victory of the season Sunday in a road game at RPI, as they fell to the Engineers, 2-0. 

Coming off a 1-1 double overtime tie at home Saturday against Sage, the Hawks could not find the back of the net Sunday despite some quality opportunities. 

Senior captain Cailin Ruoti hit a strong strike late in the first half, but it was tipped off the crossbar. Katie Buquicchio hit a similar shot in the 85th minute, but it too was tipped off the crossbar. Both shots could have easily ended in goals for SUNY New Paltz. 

The two near-goals were two of seven total shots on target for the Hawks on the evening, as they out-shot the Engineers, 22-8.  

SUNY New Paltz started the game strong defensively, but two defensive lapses resulted in a pair of RPI scores, which were all the Engineers needed to get the victory. Brianna Swinson scored in the 49th minute and Brooke Miller added the other RPI score in the 62nd minute.

"Overall, there has to be a greater degree of accountability from our backline to be sound for 90 minutes," said Hawks coach Mike Eckberg. "We can't have lapses like that. We had two breakdowns in the backline and our weakside was wide open." 

SUNY New Paltz had two early opportunities to score from graduate student Lisette Palomo and freshman Rachel Eisert, but they could not convert. Despite the loss, Eckberg felt the team created additional chances that could've easily changed the momentum. 

"Emma Voege had a good opportunity that could've changed the narrative of the game," he said. "[And] Ally Donovan had a really good mentality to create, she had a really good mindset… Katie [Buquicchio] was super in her defensive cues and in the midfield." 

Not to be overlooked on Sunday was the raucous atmosphere at East Campus Stadium. Their student section was non-stop throughout the contest, cheering on the home team while also making it as uncomfortable for the visitors as they could. Eckberg, though, welcomes those types of conditions on the road. 

"To be on the road in an environment is a great test, and you have to adapt," he said. 

The Hawks will once again be on the road in their next contest, Sept. 11 when they face Skidmore College at 7 p.m. in Saratoga Springs, NY.  

The Thoroughbreds will play a similar physical game like the Engineers, but also has the ability to possess and be creative in the attack. The last time the two teams met, SUNY New Paltz played Skidmore tough on the South Turf Field and battled to a 2-2 double overtime draw. 

For the Hawks, they'll look to get better at capitalizing on their chances in the final third.  

"We have to make the most of our attacking sequences. We can't just try to get shots to get shots [and] we have to connect the outcome to the process," Eckberg said. "Reps create confidence. We have to walk out there with the outcome that we want and deserve. Now with two games under our belt, it has to be converted to an outcome."

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