The lacrosse team has lost four of their last five games.
These losses were against two nationally-ranked Div. III teams.
On Saturday, April 11, the Hawks fell 7-5 against No. 17 SUNY Fredonia in a State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) matchup.
Hawks fourth-year co-Captain Jackie Ulanoff stopped a career-high 22 shots and recorded a .759 save percentage. Ulanoff’s 22 saves are tied for the third most in a single game in program history. She leads the SUNYAC conference in 11.85 saves per game.
Fourth-year attack Kelsey Healy led the Hawks with two goals, while third-year midfielder Alexa Vitale, fourth-year co-Captain Carissa Citro and fourth-year midfielder Lianne Valdivia each scored once. Valdivia helped New Paltz gain possession with five ground balls.
In their next game on Tuesday, April 14, New Paltz dropped a nonconference matchup to Vassar College 12-8.
The Hawks were able to rally from a 4-0 deficit to start the game and tied the score three times.
Hawks fourth-year defender Julia Johnson and second-year attack Melissa Wagner each netted a pair of goals. Wagner led the team with six shots.
Two days later, the Hawks snapped their five-game losing streak against Mount Saint Mary College in a 23-13 win.
Citro netted career goal number 100, while tying a program-record seven goals in the game. She became just the fourth New Paltz student-athlete to net at least 100 career goals.
Seven different Hawks found the back of the net in the contest.
Healy tallied six and Valdivia and Johnson each scored three. Fourth-year Jackie Wilkom scored a pair of goals. Fourth-year defender Fatima Ismail and second-year attack Sara Daly each netted their first goals of the season.
Ulanoff made 14 saves in the contest.
The Hawks faced another nationally-ranked team in No. 4 SUNY Cortland in a SUNYAC matchup on Saturday, April 18 and suffered a 21-4 loss. This concluded the Hawks’ four-game homestand.
All Hawks goals were scored by four fourth-years yet again, Valdivia, Johnson and fellow attackers Jackie Wilkom and Healy.
On Tuesday, April 21, the Hawks took to the road in a SUNYAC matchup against SUNY Oneonta and lost 22-13.
Healy and Citro scored five and four goals, respectively. Citro controlled a game-high nine draws, while Healy scooped up three ground balls. Valdivia contributed with three goals and three assists. Wagner chipped in a goal for New Paltz.
Head Coach Liz Student said this year’s team was a good group, but their conference does not allow them to have an off day.
“Our conference does not allow for small mistakes, because small mistakes lead to goals,” Student said. “We’ve had a few too many mistakes, but we’ve worked hard. The senior class has done a lot for this program in general. They’ve pushed us to this next step and then we just have to keep on pushing because you can’t be mediocre and do well here.”
Valdivia said losing at home is never easy for the team.
“I feel like we did a poor job of showing how much pride we really do have for our home turf,” Valdivia said. “The effort was there most games, but we just had trouble making the crucial plays down the stretch.”
The Hawks are officially eliminated from playoff contention. They have a record of 3-10 overall with a 1-6 SUNYAC record and will close out their regular season on Saturday, April 25 in a SUNYAC game against The College at Brockport at 1 p.m. on Old Turf Field.
With seven graduating seniors on the roster, Citro echoed Student and said the Hawks are going to play and work to win.
“In order to prepare we need to work on keeping possession of the ball and attacking the goal,” Citro said. “For some of us this is our last lacrosse game ever so we want to leave everything we have on the field.”
