SUNY New Paltz Volleyball Bounces Back

By Riley Damerell

PLATTSBURGH – The State University of New York at New Paltz women’s volleyball team bounced back from yesterday’s loss against SUNY Geneseo by sweeping the second day of pool play against SUNY Potsdam and Plattsburgh State.

“Today was important for us to get on the winning side in the conference,” said Giufre. “SUNYAC wins are tough to come by. The conference is very deep this year in quality and I’m proud of our team for putting last night’s tough loss behind us and competing hard today.”

The Hawks defeated SUNY Potsdam to start the afternoon off in straight sets 25-7, 25-20, 25-16. Head coach Matt Giufre commented on the need for the team to improve their offense and they came out firing to start the match. SUNY New Paltz dominated the opening set hitting .407 as a team with 13 kills and two errors on 27 attempts.

Although the offense slowed down the following two sets, the Hawks kept it together and were able to pull out the sweep against the Bears. The outsides were dominant in the performance as Taylor Cimillo posted a .387 hitting percentage with 11 kills and three errors on 27 attempts while Maddie Van Pelt put up zero errors and nine kills off of 19 attempts for a .474 hitting percentage.

The middle hitters also took advantage of the sets dished out by Maddie Zwickl as Kerri Neville and Demi Herasme both posted six kills off of 12 attempts. Zwickl recorded 29 assists for the match.

The defense was once again strong for the Hawks as three players posted double-digit digs. Meredith Dignan and Veronica Matedero recorded 12 and 11, respectively, while Cimillo added 14 making it a double-double performance.

Following the straight set win over the Bears the Hawks got back on the court to face the host, Plattsburgh State.

SUNY New Paltz stepped up their offense again and put up arguably their best offensive performance of the year. The team posted a .278 hitting percentage and were led by Demi Herasme who put up a monster outing for the Hawks. Herasme notched 17 kills with only one error on 28 attempts for a .571 hitting percentage.

“This weekend was a battle for her (Herasme), but what makes Demi special is the competitive fire she competes with,” said Giufre. “Even though her first couple matches weren’t up to what she’s capable of she came out against Plattsburgh determined to make an impact. She was very active and vocal at the net and used all of her shots to keep them off balance it was a great match for her and we sure needed it.”

Herasme wasn’t the only one to feast on the offensive end for the Hawks as Cimillo and Julie Greenspan posted 15 and 12 kills, respectively. Cimillo also notched her second double-double of the day adding 13 digs.

“I’ve said it all year our defense has been very good and today our offense was much more aggressive and consistent,” said Giufre. “Maddie set the ball just as well today as last night but the hitters were more patient and on time to get on top of their swings.”

Zwickl recorded an impressive 54 assists for the Hawks while her fellow senior Matedero led the defense with 21 digs. The strong defensive line has been a staple of Hawk volleyball so far this year and with the offense finally stepping up the Hawks were able to put together two SUNYAC wins.

“With Veronica, Nicole Fellone and Meredith always doing well defensively and Maddie running a great offense it was nice to see our attackers come through efficiently and more consistently today and we will look to build off that as our team continues to develop,” said Giufre.

The Hawks return home on Wednesday, September 27, and face Western Connecticut State at 7:00 p.m.