New Paltz, NY — Playing in its third game in eight days, the State University of New York New Paltz not only got through the tough stretch but did so in emphatic fashion.
 
Rolling to their third straight win, the Hawks improved to 3-1 overall after collecting their third consecutive double-digit victory with a 14-3 triumph over a solid Kean University team Monday on North Turf Field.   
 
"Got to say the locker room, the pre-talk, we're a family and I don't know, in the locker room we're always hype, getting each other going," said SUNY New Paltz freshman attacker Shannon Lewis.
 
The three-game stretch has also been littered with milestones, as Kaitlyn Shaw and Morgan Atwater surpassed the 200 and 100 goal mark last Saturday with Lexi Atwater reaching 100 points against the Cougars as she finished with four goals on nine shots on the day.
 
After the Cougars opened up with the game's first goal, Morgan Atwater tied the score two minutes later following a defensive stop. Aiylin Rutnik helped clear the ball downfield which soon led to a Lewis feed from X to Atwater who quick-sticked the pass into the net for her first of the day. SUNY New Paltz earned another defensive stop, which resulted in an errant pass that quickly transitioned the other way leading to a Morgan Atwater goal on the other side.
 
The Hawks never trailed the rest of the way.

Mia Baldinger added on, as she won the ball back on the ride. Shaw capitalized, driving through defenders and beating Kean's goalie low for the score. Lexi Atwater then won the ensuing draw control and was rewarded with a feed from Lewis, finishing to extend the advantage to 4-1 with nearly eight minutes to go.
 
 
SUNY New Paltz continued making plays on the defensive end. Helena Willis made an athletic play, getting her stick on a pass with the Cougars settled on offense. The sophomore midfielder picked up the loose ball and helped her team to a man-up opportunity as Kean was hit with a green card on a foul on Willis in the midfield. The Hawks offense coughed up the ball with an unforced throwaway, but Francesca Corozzo immediately returned possession over to her team with a back-check. Amy Whitman picked up the ground ball, clearing and the result was a Shaw free position on the other end. Shaw put away the goal at the hash, despite the Cougars returning to full strength as she helped her team to a 5-1 lead after the first.  
Kean earned a goal back, stripping Mia Baldinger on a free position and scoring in transition. The visitors won the ensuing draw but went the wrong the direction before overcompensating with a short pass in the middle of the field that was easily picked by Lewis. The sequence led to a Kira Tucker free position as she drew a shooting space call. The senior beat Cougars goalie Brooke Sztenderowicz with a bouncer to push the lead back to four.
 
SUNY New Paltz turned the ball over on back-to-back plays on the defensive end but showed its resiliency on an extended possession for Kean with about nine minutes left in the second. Whitman and Rutnik did well closing in with a double in the middle of the arc, forcing a turnover. Whitman picked up the loose ball and cleared leading to a Lexi Atwater goal.  
 
The Hawks started to roll from there. Baldinger threw a nifty feed inside to Atwater for an extra pass on a free position before Shaw found Lewis cutting from behind the crease on a man-up opportunity to fatten the cushion to 9-2 entering halftime.
 
Shaw was the first to score in the second half following another good defensive play by Corozzo. The senior captain applied tight pressure behind the cage, forcing a tough pass that went out of bounds for Kean. She then ran the ball down field, found her co-captain Shaw who netted her third of the day to extend the lead to eight with 11 minutes remaining in the quarter.
 
Ava Padilla got in on the action, scoring off the ensuing draw win by Morgan Atwater off a feed by Baldinger. Lewis then officially gave the Hawks a running clock, attacking the cage from behind the net with the shot clock rolling down to get the score to 12-2.
 
The clock ran from there. Kean scored off a free position attempt with less than seven minutes left but Lexi Atwater put away one final attempt to reach milestone 100 to cap an impressive performance by the Hawks.
 
Shaw and Lewis each had five points with Lewis notching a career-high on two goals and three assists, while adding two ground balls and three caused turnovers. Baldinger and Whitman each finished with a game-high four ground balls with Baldinger adding two assists and three caused turnovers. Morgan Woolley led all players with five caused turnovers to go along with three ground balls.
 
"It felt really good getting a career high today. It feels incredible," Lewis said.
 
Gabriella Tomasso earned the start in goal and had her best game of the season, totaling a season-high six saves and allowing just two. Piper Mascaros came in for relief in the second half and finished with one stop.
 
SUNY New Paltz will have some rest before its next matchup with the team traveling to Colorado for spring break to facing to nationally ranked programs in No. 19 Colorado College and No. 9 Pomona Pitzer. The Hawks will face the hosting Tigers Monday at 6 p.m. EST before closing out the trip against the Sagehens Wednesday at 1 p.m. EST.
 
"Yes, I think we're going to keep the ball rolling in Colorado," Lewis said. "We start Wednesday… we're just going to keep getting better."


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