New Paltz, NY – The State University of New York at New Paltz won its Senior Day game Saturday with a 3-0 shutout over Fredonia on South Turf Field.
 
The Hawks played a physical game against the Blue Devils but struck first in the third minute with a goal by graduate student Gabriel Cruz. SUNY New Paltz continued its pressure in Fredonia territory but came up just short of scoring another goal in the 12th minute on a shot by Philip Varner, which was saved by Blue Devils keeper Tanner Stutzman.
 
The pressure quickly shifted when Fredonia got a shot off but was quickly rejected by junior goalkeeper Christian Micheli. The Hawks didn't let that stop their momentum and got off two more shots before the game stopped due to a hard collision between Stutzman and senior midfielder Brian Boylan. Boylan, who was celebrated alongside fellow seniors, Tim Kane, Benjamin Perez, Owen McGarrity, Papis Konate and Brandon Davenport, did not re-enter the game. 

Despite the stoppage of play following the collision, SUNY New Paltz didn't let up and continued to pressure offensively.  The Hawks ended the first half dominating Fredonia in all aspects, including nine shots, four of those on goal.
 
 
Going into the second half, SUNY New Paltz was ready to continue its momentum. The game remained scoreless for the first part of the second half with multiple shot attempts for the Hawks, but nothing found the back of the net. That changed in the 77th minute when a nice pass from junior captain Joseph DiPreta, gave graduate student captain Philip Varner the opportunity to score with the latter bending a dagger to the top right corner for his third of the year. The goal caused an eruption of excitement on the SUNY New Paltz bench, and the energy continued for the remainder of the game.
Only five minutes later, the Hawks found the back of the net again. DiPreta took a nice corner to set up sophomore Alex Wyant for the perfect header into the goal. Although up by three, SUNY New Paltz didn't let off their pressure and fought until the buzzer.
 
"In the second half start, the guys came off the bench and played great and we were able to put a few more away, and it was good to see the second half go as we hoped, giving less chances for them and I think we had pretty good control once we got to the midway point," said SUNY New Paltz coach Kyle Clancy.
 
The Hawks out-shot the Blue Devils 21-7, including 10 shots on goal. Micheli, although not needed often totaled three saves to help SUNY New Paltz achieve their seventh shutout of the season.

"The last couple of games have been rough in terms of scoring so getting a few today will help us bring momentum into next week," said Varner.
 
With their win Saturday, the Hawks clinched the fifth seed in the SUNYAC playoffs and will go on the road to face No. 4 Buffalo State Oct. 28 for an opening round quarterfinal matchup. The Hawks defeated the Bengals in the regular season on their home turf, 2-0.


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