The State University of New York at New Paltz men's volleyball team concludes its 2022 season away from the friendly confines of the Hawk Center. The Hawks long road trip takes them to two UVC opponents, Elmira College's Speidel Gym/Pat Thompson Court on Friday night and Nazareth College's Kidera Gym on Saturday afternoon.  SUNY New Paltz already secured the top seed in the United Volleyball Conference Championship tournament, but a sweep would conclude a perfect conference regular season.
 
The Soaring Eagles of Elmira currently hold a 16-10 overall record and are 2-3 in UVC competition. Their most recent wins were last Saturday, 3-2 over D'Youville and 3-1 over Potsdam. The Hawks hold a 10-3 series lead over the Eagles, their last meeting a 3-0 SUNY New Paltz sweep on April 1, 2021.
 
On the season, the Eagles are averaging 11.6 kills, 10.7 assists, 2.0 service aces, 7.5 digs and 1.6 blocks per set, respectively. 
Performing on top for Elmira is this week's AVCA DIII National Player of the Week, junior setter/right side Oscar Munoz Trinidad (6'2, Jarabacoa, DR).  Munuz Trinidad has 233 kills, 207 assists, 26 service aces, 100 digs and 48 blocks. First year outside hitter Alberto Mauricio (6'0, San Pedro de Maroris, DR) has 224 kills, 33 service aces, and 120 digs.  Junior setter Neiran Galan-Canales (5'10, San Juan, PR) leads with 524 assists.  Sophomore outside hitter/right side Jordan Peiser (6'3, Great Neck, NY) and junior middle blocker Ryan Mattes (6'2, Easton, PA) have 32 and 27 aces respectively.  Mattes also is also second in blocks with 49. First year middle blocker Edwin Sosa (6'4, Santo Domingo, DR) is tops with 50 blocks and senior middle blocker Matt Amodio (6'7, Wetherfield, CT) has 30 blocks.
 
Heading north to Rochester, the Hawks take on the Golden Flyers of Nazareth on Senior Day with a scheduled 1 p.m. Saturday whistle. SUNY New Paltz has met Nazareth 23 times, winning 16 of those matches. Their last matchup was on April 9, 2021, a 3-0 victory for the Hawks.
 
Nazareth played area rival St. John Fisher Wednesday night, losing a hard fought five set match to drop its overall record to 18-7 and its UVC mark to 3-3.  As a team, the Flyers are averaging 11.5 kills, 11.0 assists, 2.7 service aces, 8.7 digs and 1.6 blocks per set, not including Wednesday's match against the Cardinals.
 
Leading Nazareth with 244 kills is sophomore outside hitter/libero Owen Wickens (6'2, Rochester, NY). A 2021 UVC Rookie of the Year and AVCA North Region All-Star, Wickens is tops in service aces with 73, digs with 149 and is second in assists with 339. Graduate student outside hitter Antonio Sargent (6'1, Chesapeake, VA), a 2021 UVC Second Team selection, is close behind with 239 kills. Junior setter/outside hitter Trent Caviness (5'11, Syracuse, NY), a 2021 UVC Honorable Mention selection, is tops with 352 assists and second with 32 service aces. Junior middle blocker/right side Colin Donohue (6'3, Scotch Plains, NJ) has a team leading 61 blocks. Junior libero Seth Terzo (5'11, Fairport, NY) is second with 129 digs, while UVC Rookie of the Week and first year setter/right side Josh Weaver (6'3, Clifton Park, NY) has contributed 109 kills, 32 digs and 37 blocks for the Golden Flyers.

The Hawks are currently ranked seventh in the most recent AVCA DIII national poll but are coming off a tough 3-0 road loss to AVCA No. 1 ranked Springfield. SUNY New Paltz is averaging 11.7 kills, 10.7 assists, 2.1 service aces, 8.6 digs and 1.5 blocks per set, respectively.
 
Junior middle blocker Pat Wing (6'4, Massapequa, NY) leads the Hawks with 179 kills and 48 blocks; he also has 31 service aces. Senior libero Dan LaRosa (6'0, Lake Grove, NY) is tops with 181 digs. Senior setter Kyle Shaffer (6'4, Smithtown, NY) leads with 520 assists, with 52 digs and 22 blocks. Senior outside hitter Chris Shanley (6'3, Smithtown, NY) has 174 kills, 93 digs and 21 service aces and is coming off a UVC Player of the Week selection after setting a career-high of 20 kills in a win over NYU last week. Senior outside hitter Brendan Spulnick (6'4, Clifton Park, NY) leads with 55 service aces; he also has 145 kills, 96 digs, and 20 blocks.  Senior setter Cam Clark (6'2, Farmington, NY) is second in assists with 229.
 
The Hawks, finalist in the 2021 UVC championship and 2019 NCAA DIII champions, look to begin their annual championship quest once their regular season ends this weekend. SUNY New Paltz will serve as hosts for the UVC Championship Tournament on April 8-10.

**************
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.