NEW PALTZ, NY – The State University of New York at New Paltz softball team takes its 9-5 record into a double-header Friday at Farmingdale State College, a matchup that will mark the first ever meeting between the two programs. The Hawks are winners of three of their last four games while the Rams sport a strong 7-2 record. 
 
SUNY New Paltz is coming off the PFX Spring Games in Clermont, FL, where they went 8-5. After defeating Alfred University 5-4, the team lost to Misericordia University, St. Lawrence University, and North Central College. However, they rebounded to win three straight against Augsburg University, Rhodes College, and Utica University. After games against Wesleyan University and Arcadia University were canceled, the Hawks lost 7-1 to Bethel University before beating the University of Wisconsin-River Falls 4-3 in nine innings, Clarkson University 10-2 in five innings, and Washington College of Maryland by a score of 5-2. In their final game, against Springfield College, SUNY New Paltz lost 5-0. A prior contest that was to be played on March 12 against the Falcons of UW-River Falls was canceled, as was a game that same day against Dominican College. 
 
Needless to say, winning three games out of four and being four games over the .500 mark is a good way to return back to New York soil. The Hawks will look to ride a potent offense into Friday, as three of their hitters who have at least 30 at-bats have averages over .350. Madison Maggs, who hit a home run against Misericordia, is batting .378 in 37 at-bats, while Katie Quagliana is hitting .375 in 40 plate appearances and Jackie Rometo .386 in 44 at-bats. 
"Our Florida trip went really well. We came out with a lot of energy and we faced a lot of really good teams," Maggs said. "I think we're definitely putting all the pieces together. It's going to be a great season. We have a lot of depth in this program and I can't wait to see how it turns out."
 
Rometo leads the squad in hits with 17, while Quagliana and Maggs are not far behind with 15 and 14, respectively. Maggs also leads the team in home runs with two and RBI with 10. On the mound, Lindsay Roman and Jillian Harrison are off to particularly good starts. Roman sports a 4-1 record with an exceptional 1.56 earned run average in 34 ⅔ innings pitched giving up 37 hits and six earned runs, while Harrison despite an 0-1 record has a 2.25 earned run average and has allowed just nine hits over 12 innings. Roman has also pitched two complete games. Sydney Waldon has struck out 25 batters in 21 ⅔ innings, while Katie Quagliana has struck out 14 in the same amount of innings. 
 
The SUNY New Paltz pitchers will face a tough task against a Farmingdale State team that has scored 65 runs over nine games so far. In their seven games in Florida, the Rams drove in 10 or more runs four different times, defeating NYU by a score of 10-4, Edgewood College 10-5, Hamline University 10-2, and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point 12-11. They opened the PFX Games with a 9-1 win over Smith College, and posted additional victories against Ramapo College and Rutgers University-Camden. Their losses came against the University of Wisconsin-River Falls 10-2 and the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse 7-3. 
The aforementioned explosive offense for Liz Pennino's bunch includes six different players with 10 or more hits, led by Jenna Giliberti's 33. Brook Walker, Priscilla Rivera and Lyndsey Shaw are just behind her with 32, 31, and 30 hits. Shaw has a team-leading batting average of .467. She also has 11 RBI, three triples and two home runs, all of which lead the team. 
 
Allie Stanya has been great on the mound for the Rams. She is 4-0 with two complete games, and in 30 innings she has yielded just 31 hits and 13 earned runs while striking out 21 batters. Her 3.03 earned run average leads Farmingdale State. Ava Shorr is not far behind in the production department, with a 3-1 record and also two complete games. In 21 ⅓ innings, she has allowed 26 hits, 15 earned runs and has struck out 16. 
 
Both arms would provide stern challenges for the Hawks, as the Rams have stellar pitching to go along with their high powered offense. Despite the challenge on the mound, SUNY New Paltz has a complete offense themselves that has tallied 76 runs with four games where they have scored 10 or more runs.
 
"Going into this weekend I think we expect from each other to come out with a lot of energy," said Hawks sophomore infielder Jillian Shelbourne. "We have a lot of energy on this team and we pick each other up really well, so I think we're expecting that from each other and really just come out with confidence."
 
SUNY New Paltz is set to face the Rams Friday with the first game slated for 3 p.m.

Preview Featuring Madison Maggs & Jillian Shelbourne


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