The 2024 version of the Hawks baseball program had one goal in mind: to return to the SUNYAC Championship Tournament after a five-year absence. Not only did SUNY New Paltz land back into postseason contention but rode an unprecedented run and exceeded that modest expectation, turning the 2024 season into one to be long remembered as the best thus far in its 89-year history.
 
The reigning SUNYAC Champions now are in a place they've never been before entering the season — defending a title. Despite losing key players from last season, the Hawks arguably boast a more talented lineup and rotation than last year's championship team. The pieces are again in place to return to dominance for a coveted SUNYAC title and NCAA run.
 
"We know we can't take anything for granted," said SUNY New Paltz junior captain Matt Sarni. "We know it took a lot of hard work to win it all last year, so it's going to take a lot of discipline this year to keep working hard. We have to just keep our head down and keep working hard so we can repeat."
 
ABCA Region III and SUNYAC Coach of the Year Thomas Seay guided his group to a 31-16 overall and 15-8 SUNYAC mark respectively last season, both best ever performances. Earning the second seed in the SUNYAC Championship Tournament, SUNY New Paltz clawed its way through the competition to knock off No. 20 nationally ranked and top seeded Cortland to capture the Hawks' first ever SUNYAC Tournament crown and earn a trip to the NCAA DIII tournament. In their first ever NCAA game, they downed No. 17 Eastern Connecticut University to move forward into the regional semifinals, only to fall to regional champion and No. 1 nationally ranked Endicott University. The Hawks ended their historic season with a record 31 wins, while tallying 522 hits, scoring 402 runs, a team batting average of .316 and an .868 OPS, among the best in the nation.
 
 
So what does 2025 have in store for the Hawks? SUNY New Paltz, ranked third in the SUNYAC coaches preseason 2025 poll, returns 20 players from last year's championship squad, while adding five transfer students and 10 first year players to the roster. Most importantly, four ABCA Region III honorees are back for the Hawks, led by ABCA and D3.baseball.com All-American Tommy Kreider. Additionally, six SUNYAC All-Tournament picks return to provide experience to the squad.
 
"I think we have the same mentality as we did last year. We win the day and focus on just today. We're trying to repeat that," Kreider said.
 
"This year I think they're going to come at us more with harder pitchers. I think they overlooked us last year," he added. "We definitely have a target on our back, but we don't care. We're just focusing on each day to win it. With practices today, we'll win that day, and we won't look ahead toward playoffs or anything yet."  
Behind the plate looks to be one of several strong suits for the Hawks. All-Tournament select and graduate student Dillon Ristano (Woodmere, NY/George W. Hewlett HS) is the incumbent.  Ristano started 46 of 46 games a year ago and had 319 catches, 291 putouts, 23 assists and a .984 fielding average. Offensively, he hit .279 in 183 at bats, with 51 hits, 39 runs and 33 RBI. Wallace Kirkpatrick (Cornwall, NY/Cornwall Central HS), who had several timely hits in the SUNYAC Tournament returns for this second season. He saw action in 18 games with 13 starts.  Adding significantly to the battery core is graduate transfer Ty Gallagher (Saugerties, NY/Saugerties HS/Herkimer CC/Hobart College). Gallagher led Herkimer CC to the 2022 NJCAA DIII national championship. As a senior at Hobart, he was team MVP after leading the team with a .359 batting average, was first in hits, doubles, home runs and RBIs, with 10 multi-hit games. For the future, SUNY New Paltz recruited one of Suffolk County's best in Harry Baliber (Huntington, NY/Huntington HS).
 
SUNY New Paltz returns a veteran infield, anchored by its All-American in Krieder (New City, NY/Clarkstown South HS). Kreider is already the program's most decorated player, as he holds program records for single season runs scored, hits, doubles, total bases and on-base-percentage and is narrowing down the all-time program record for runs, sac flies and stolen bases. 
 
In a career junior season, Kreider started all 46 games, batted .463 with a 1.216 OPS, a .665 slugging percent and a .561 on-base average, while totaling a team-high 21 stolen bases with a .969 fielding percentage.
 
"I'm just looking to be a better leader this year," Kreider said. "I want to of course to have the same exact year or better, but I'm focusing more on the team so I'll do whatever it takes to make the playoffs and run it back again."
 
Junior Fabian Apicella (Howard Beach, NY/Scholar's Academy) had a break-out sophomore campaign in his own right. He started 41 of 42 games, batted .405 with 60 hits, 35 runs and 27 RBIs, with a .882 fielding percentage. Senior Ryan Mackle (Toms River, NJ/Toms River South HS) and junior Garrett Grathwohl (Cutchogue, NY/Mattituck Jr-Sr HS) saw action in 14 and 12 games, adding five hits and two RBI and two hits, five RBI, respectively. Three freshmen follow, with Jagger Duque (Bellmore, NY/St. Anthony's HS) an integral player in the Friars 2024 NYSCHSAA championship run. Two infielders/pitchers, Johnny McHugh (Port Chester, NY/Greenwich (CT) HS) and Christian Apicella (Howard Beach, NY/Scholar's Academy), bring loads of experience; McHugh was All-State for the Cardinals, while Apicella was the Seawolves MVP, with a career .335 batting average and an 8-6 record on the mound.  
The outfield is another strong part of the Hawks' 2025 run to the title. All-ABCA Region III senior Michael Ascanio (Armonk, NY/Byram Hills HS) is back to anchor the Hawks. Ascanio started 45 games in 2024 with a .322 batting average, a .936 OPS, with 174 at bats, 56 hits, 33 runs, 42 RBIs and 14 stolen bases, with a fielding average of .978, proving himself as one of the best two-way players in the conference last season.
 
Senior Anthony Pericolosi (Rockville Centre, NY/South Side HS) made an immediate impact in his first season with SUNY New Paltz last season and most notably shined in the SUNYAC Championship, earning All-Tournament honors. Starting 42 games, he batted .313 with an .862 OPS on 179 at-bats with 56 hits, 47 runs and 41 RBI, while holding a fielding average of .978. Also vying for spots in the outfield are graduate student Alex Ouellette (Middle Sackvile, NS, Canada/Newbridge Academy) and sophomore Joe Richetti (Holbrook, NY/ Sachem HS East). Ouellette saw action in 11 games with one hit and two RBI. Richetti had a promising start before an early-season injury derailed what looked like a Rookie of the Year-type campaign. He went on to make 12 starts, batted .293 with an .834 OPS, and in 58 at-bats totaled 17 hits, 13 runs and 14 RBI with a 1.000 fielding percentage on 33 catches, 31 putouts and two assists. Sophomore transfer Ryan Muskopf (Dix Hills/Half Hollow Hills HS West/George Mason University) saw limited DI time down south, but has the scholastic credentials, a former All-Long Island and All Suffolk County pick.
 
"The guys last year, they were so key," Sarni said. "They brought that mindset to us and although they're not here, the mindset that they had is still with us."
 
On paper, SUNY New Paltz has the deepest pitching staff in recent memory. The Hawks boast 20 pitchers on the roster, returning 10 from a year ago. Leading the pack are two juniors, both of whom earned All-SUNYAC First Team and ABCA All-Region III honors a year ago in Xavier Zykoff (Poughkeepsie, NY/Spackenkill HS) and Sarni (Levittown, NY/ General Douglas MacArthur HS). Zykoff started 10 games with 14 total appearances. He finished with a 5-1 record, and one save, while posting a 5.58 ERA and a 1.51 WHIP in 69.1 innings, with 57 strikeouts and a fielding percentage of .917. Sarni saw action in 19 games, mostly in relief as he had two starts. He was 5-2 with a team record five saves, while finishing with an ERA of 4.69, WHIP of 1.56 in 48 innings pitched, while totaling 48 strikeouts and a fielding percentage of 1.000.
 
Sarni came into last season looking to play both in the infield and on the mound, but due to a preseason knee injury was limited to helping the Hawks on the bump. The result was a career year, but the junior is ready to prove his worth on both sides this season fully healthy as he tries to lead the program to another championship run.
 
"For myself, I proved myself as a pitcher but not as a hitter so I'm on a mission this year," he said. "Leadership, like I said, the captains last year did a great job of showing me of what I need to do this year. So, I'm ready to step up."  
Also experienced on the mound are senior Jason Wall (Levittown, NY/General Douglas MacArthur HS) and Frankie Collora (Stony Brook, NHY/Ward Melville HS). Wall pitched 32 innings with 18 strikeouts and Collora saw action in 20 innings with 10 strikeouts. Three juniors, Robert Gregory (Whitestone, NY/Bayside HS), Jeff Lundstedt (East Fishkill/John Jay-East Fishkill HS), and Liam Ryan (Middle Island, NH/Longwood HS) contributed significantly in 2024.  Gregory started six games with a 4-0 record with one save, an ERA of 3.34 and a 1.55 WHIP in 32 innings, with 32 strikeouts. Lundstedt went 1-0 in eight appearances with one save and a 3.12 ERA. Ryan went 3-2 in 14 appearances, three starts, with one save, with 40 strikeouts in 32 innings. His impressive work in the SUNYAC Championship earned him All-Tournament honors.
 
Another All-Tournament selection was sophomore Ryan Knieriemen (Westhampton, NY/Westhampton Beach HS), the winning pitcher in the SUNYAC championship finale.  Knieriemen was 2-0 in 12 appearances and one big start in the championship final for the Hawks. In 21.1 innings, he posted a 3.80 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. Sophomore Dylan Thomasson (Bohemia, NY/Connetquot HS) appeared in 13 games, starting three, with a 1-1 record and 13 strikeouts in 16 innings. Fellow second-year Dylan Hayes (Cornwall, NY/Cornwall Central HS) started one of nine appearances, going 1-0 in 10 innings with nine strikeouts.  
 
Four transfers bring depth and experience to the Hawks battery. Senior Scott Scheppy
(Newburgh, NY/Newburgh Free Academy/Mercy University) started 24 of 35 games for the Mavericks with 178.1 innings pitched, he had 91 strikeouts while adding a .282 career batting average. Junior Danny DiEdwards (New Rochelle, NY/New Rochelle HS/Monroe University) started 10 of 13 games in 2024 with a 6-2 record in 64.1 innings with 41 strikeouts. Sophomore Tyler Lopez (Miller Place, NY/Miller Place HS/Dominican (NY) University) did not see action for the Chargers, but playing for the Atlantic Whitecaps was 5-3 in 32.4 innings pitched with 34 strikeouts. Sophomore Michael Weed (Pine Bush, NY/Pine Bush HS/College of St. Rose) appeared in 12 games for Golden Knights, with 18 strikeouts in 15.1 innings. As a high school senior, he was named a 2023 Prep Baseball Report Pre-Season All-NYS player.
 
"I think our pitching class is very talented this year," Kreider said. "We brought in a lot of good transfers that have experience and will be ready right away and compete. The freshmen class too. [We have] a lot of pitchers and hitters that can compete very early on for us. It will be a big step."
 
Six first year pitchers round out SUNY New Paltz's staff for 2025. They include Carson McCaffrey (Port Jefferson Station, NY/Comsewogue HS), Dalton Rutt (Stony Brook, NY/Ward Melville HS), Austin Barrett (Farmingville, NY/Sachem HS East), Ben Kennedy (St. James, NY/Smithtown East HS), Kiran Paingankar (Bellmore, NY/Wellington C. Mepham HS), and Connor Catania (Smithtown, NY/Smithtown West HS).  All are proven talents, having earned numerous individual honors and all having championship playoff experience.
 
"They have a lot of talent," Sarni added. "They have good stuff and they have the ability to throw strike and compete. They're all competitors I think that's just the bottom line. They came here day one, ready to go."
 
The Hawks are currently scheduled to open the 2025 season playing 12 games on the road. Initially heading down to Virginia to begin the year, the trip was canceled due to weather and field conditions. Instead, they will travel to New Jersey and face DeSales University for a doubleheader starting at 11 a.m. at Diamond Nation. Starting pitchers are projected to be Weed for game one and Sarni for game two.
 
SUNY New Paltz returns to Loren Campbell Field for its home opener March 21-22 against SUNYAC newcomer SUNY Canton. Eight non-conference matchups are interposed between the remaining 15 SUNYAC games, with the 2025 season concluding at home against SUNYAC and Catskill Cup rival, SUNY Oneonta. The SUNYAC Championship Tournament runs from May 8 through May 10.
 


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