New Paltz NY — The State University of New York at New Paltz returned home Friday for its final homestand of the regular season, taking on United Volleyball Conference (UVC) opponent Nazareth.
 
The Hawks (16-11) looked to move past their two game losing skid without All-American opposite Pat Wing, who will be out the rest of the season with a leg injury. They failed to pick up the win in four sets falling (25-27, 25-20, 14-25, 23-25).      
 
The loss officially eliminated SUNY New Paltz from playoff contention after falling to 1-5 in the UVC. The early end to the season will mark the first time the Hawks missed out on the postseason since 2008.                            
 
Matt Teplansky replaced Wing at opposite Friday night and stepped up to court when he notched two kills assisted by Matt Marusza which got SUNY New Paltz within one early at 4-3 and 5-4, respectively. No more than two points was how the match went until AJ Fitzgerald socked a service ace that put the Hawks up 13-11. 
 
"It's  really tough without him, he's our go-to-guy, he could always count on him when we needed him," Teplansky said of the loss of Wing. "We had a great game, but there were too many downs that came with not enough ups. It's really tough to end the season with a loss like that."
 
Up 22-18, Teplansky registered another kill assisted by Marusza, which extended SUNY New Paltz lead to five, but the Golden Flyers soared back. Nazareth tied the game at set point with a kill which made it 24 all. Christopher Larkin tallied a kill assisted by Marusza, but luck was on Nazareth's side as a block and an attack error gave the Golden Flyers a 27-25 first set win.
 
Michael Spiegel took a swing at opposite following a solid performance against Vassar Wednesday. He and Fitzgerald both registered a kill, which gave the Hawks a 3-0 lead. The run wasn't over, as Nazareth committed two attack errors that gave SUNY New Paltz a 5-0 lead with the Hawks capping the run with a pair of aces to hold an 8-0 advantage.   
The Golden Flyers came back midway through the set to get within one following four-straight points on kills and an ace, cutting the lead to 15-14. SUNY New Paltz called a timeout to take a breath and regroup. Larkin got an insurance point back with a kill assisted by Marusza. Nazareth was persistent in a comeback and it succeeded when an attack error evened the score at 17. Larkin continued the path to keep the lead, adding another kill assisted by Marusza to push his team up, 18-17. That was the turning point the rest of the way, as SUNY New Paltz kept the Golden Flyers from taking off and went on a 7-3 run to earn the win, 25-20.
 
The third set started off not as kind to the hosts as they were down 10-5. Looking at a seven point deficit, Larkin helped his team back within six, playing lockdown defense with a fantastic block to cut the score, 19-13.
 
SUNY New Paltz was down by 10 with Nazareth holding set point at 24-14. The Golden Flyers sealed the 2-1 lead on an ace to take the third, 25-14.
 
The Hawks continued having trouble getting out in front early in the fourth. Nazareth held a 9-4 advantage and continued overpowering the hosts to build a hefty 22-14 cushion. However, with its playoff hopes on the line, SUNY New Paltz slowly worked its way back, providing hope for a comeback. 
 
Daniel Shanley showed his defensive prowess with a block that gave the Hawks a point back at 22-17. An attack error and a kill by Geoff Ndoria trimmed the deficit to three at 22-19. The rally continued when a kill by Spiegel assisted by Shanley cut the difference to two before a block from Shanley brought the score to only one at 23-22.
 
With Nazareth holding match point at 24-23, the Hawks couldn't side out and their postseason hopes were washed away as the Golden Flyers found the empty floor for the kill on the following point to seal at 25-23 set win and 3-1 victory. 
 
Fitzgerald tallied 13 kills and seven digs. Spiegel tallied nine kills and two digs. Krish Jain notched six kills, one ace and one dig, Larkin socked five kills and six digs, while Marusza and Shanley finished with 19 and 15 assists, respectively. 
 
SUNY New Paltz concludes its 2024 season Saturday in the Hawk Center against UVC foe St. John Fisher and Russell Sage College for a tri-match at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. The Hawks will honor graduating seniors Wing and Adam Brawn prior to the game.


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