New Paltz, NY — The State University of New York New Paltz suffered its first loss of the season Tuesday night, falling to the visiting Ephs of Williams College, 74-59 in the Hawk Center.
 
The Hawks (4-1 overall) led for most of the first half, getting out to a quick five-point lead within the opening four minutes, which they sustained until the final two minutes of the game. Alex Krupinski gave SUNY New Paltz its largest advantage following a make on a triple off a feed from Ethan St. Lucia with just more than 10 minutes to go.
 
Williams never went away though and the Hawks had trouble extending their advantage, getting into foul trouble early which allowed the Ephs to slow the game down and get to the foul line where they made 6-for-10 in the last 11 minutes of the half.
 
LaMar Matthews picked up a defensive board following a miss on a free throw and then scored on the other end to re-create a five-point lead. The Ephs answered with a put-back in the paint and after a turnover scored another in the lane to get within one with just more than two minutes to go. A block by Williams caused another turnover, which led to a quick score to give the visitors their first lead since the opening minutes. A.J. Knight forced a turnover, getting his hands on a steal with the Ephs trying to drive through the paint which led to a fast-break basket by Sean St. Lucia on a dish from Knight. Williams again quickly answered, however, going up by one and never trailed for the remainder of the game.
 
The Ephs went into the half up, 35-32 over the Hawks while shooting 52 percent from the field on just 25 attempts. SUNY New Paltz, meanwhile, hit 33 percent on 12-for-26 shooting from the floor.
 
Williams continued working the paint, using its size to get inside and hit 14 of its 19 points from the lane in the opening 10 minutes of the second half to help establish a double-digit lead. The Hawks went cold for a three-minute stretch to allow the Ephs to go on a 7-0 run and get out in front, 58-45 with eight minutes remaining in the game.
 
Williams took its largest lead at 17 thanks to a pair of made free throws with less than six minutes to play. It continued getting to the charity stripe and made 7-for-8 in the final four minutes to stay in front and earn the win.
 
 
SUNY New Paltz finished the game shooting 33.3 percent from the floor, including just 7-for-27 from the 3-point line, including missing nine of its last 11 attempts from behind the arc. The Ephs finished on 50 percent from the field with 40 of their points coming in the paint and 19 coming from the foul line as they hit on 73.1 percent.
 
Isaiah Rivera led the Hawks with a double-double, finishing with 10 points and 10 rebounds to go along with an assist and three steals in 30 minutes. Krupinski followed with 11 points and two steals in 21 minutes off the bench. Smith added eight points and eight rebounds with two assists and a block, while Knight had a team-leading four steals with three assists, a block, a rebound and three points.
 
SUNY New Paltz returns to the Hawk Center Friday and Saturday, hosting Fredonia and Buffalo State for its first SUNYAC action of the season. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. and 4 p.m., respectively.



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