The State University of New York at New Paltz jumps back into the swing of things as they travel to Orlando, Florida for its Spring Break Trip. The Hawks will take on Hardin-Simmons University on March 13 to begin their Spring play and continue through March 16.
"I think this is our toughest spring break trip yet and I did this purposely," said SUNY New Paltz coach
Rob Bruley. "I wanted to really have challenging matches during the spring, ending with a Division [II] matchup, as we're building for the one match against Geneseo. We have some good matches coming up on the schedule from very strong Division III teams around the country."
The Hawks went 7-1 through their fall schedule, including a perfect 7-0 in conference play to earn the top seed in the SUNYAC Tournament. This coming April they return to the court for four matches in Florida where they went 2-2 last season. SUNY New Paltz has a little more depth than in the fall, returning junior
Tatiana Barnett, a former SUNYAC Rookie of the Year who also earned SUNYAC Doubles Team of the Year in 2022, alongside graduate
Trinity Chow. Along with Barnett, the team has
Isabel van der Veen back in the lineup who returns from an elbow injury and should provide depth at doubles.
"It's been great to have Tati and Izzy back after missing out in the fall with them," Bruley said. "Justine [Stanejko] at one is exceptionally strong, but it's great to have competition — we have a small roster, but great competition among them especially now with Tatiana and Izzy coming in again. We have to take it easy with Izzy, she's coming off a major surgery, but she and Tatiana will fight for four or five singles and two and three doubles. We're a small roster, but I like what we have."
The match between SUNY New Paltz and Hardin-Simmons University will be the first between programs. The Hawks will then take on Colby-Sawyer College on March 14, hoping to continue their winning streak against the Chargers. SUNY New Paltz will face NESCAC's Connecticut College for the second time in program history on March 15, winning last year over the Camels, 6-3. Texas A&M-Kingsville caps SUNY New Paltz's spring break trip, playing the Division II Javelinas who went 5-4 this past spring and 2-2 in the Lone Star Conference.
The competition will be a good test for the Hawks and especially for freshman
Justine Stanejko who went undefeated in dual match play in the fall at first singles. She is the favorite to land SUNYAC MVP honors this spring, hoping to lead the team back to a conference championship in 2023.
"I really want to see her challenged. We saw her challenged in the fall from the girl from RPI, a regional player. She takes every match in stride and she certainly has the pedigree to matchup against these big times players," Bruley said. "And I think she's excited to see how she matches up as well. It'll be a big learning experience for both Justin and Nina [Genzone] our two freshmen."
After a week hiatus, the Hawks will come back to New York where they will play Ithaca College. The first time they have taken on the Bombers since 2019. SUNY New Paltz will host its first home match of spring play against Wilkes University on April 1 before hitting the road April 5 to Hoboken, NJ to take on Stevens. The Hawks then host their Green Out Game for mental health awareness against Saint Thomas Aquinas College on April 7 and play RIT home the following day.
The Hawks will host a New Paltz tournament and their Senior Day April 15 where they will face Hartwick, Farmingdale, and Cortland. That following week, April 21, SUNY New Paltz will travel to Ewing, NJ to play The College of New Jersey.
The SUNYAC tournament will be hosted at the Binghamton Tennis Club starting on April 28 with the final being on that following day. SUNY New Paltz will be taking on SUNY Geneseo in the SUNYAC semifinals. But, before they look ahead to postseason play the Hawks open up their spring break trip Monday. First serve against the Cowboys is slated for 6 p.m. at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida.
"I'm just hoping the weather is good. We're excited to get going, the season goes so quickly," Bruley added. "We're just taking each match as they come and want everyone to play to best of their ability and keep their work ethic up and then just see where we are."
***************************
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.
