On Saturday, April 30, the New Paltz Men’s Lacrosse Team took to Plattsburgh State’s home field to play their final match of the season. It was senior day for the Cardinals, and they weren’t planning on losing. The game started out strong for the Hawks.
Third-year attacker Nate Biblowitz made the first point for New Paltz with an assist from third-year midfielder Aidan Gregory. Shortly after, the Hawks secured two more goals, ending the first period with a score of 3-1. “I think we made a huge step as a newer program this season,” second-year attacker John Reese remarked. “We got the monkey off our back and not only won some conference games, but we also got the first SUNYAC win in program history.”
The Hawks’ Head Coach Dwayne Stewart was very proud of his team this season. “Our young guys have been doing a great job of accepting, learning and enhancing our systems and culture. The sky’s the limit for these young Hawks,” Stewart said.
The second period began a little rocky, with three back-to-back goals from the Cardinals. First-year midfielder Anthony Senecal quickly evened the score with an unassisted goal at minute 09:51. Plattsburgh gained strength and relentlessly scored three more goals before the end of the second period.
Things were looking grim for the Hawks, but they came back after half-time ready to fight. At the start of the third period, first-year midfielder/attacker James Flanagan made a swift score with an assist from Reese. The Hawks secured one more goal from Flanagan but the Cardinals were still in the lead 6-9. The Cardinals then gained two more goals towards the end of the third period, making the score 6-11.
Senecal scored unassisted to start the fourth period and helped the Hawks move closer toward their goal of victory. The Cardinals were gruesome, and scored two more goals by minute 11:42. The game ended with a final score of 14-10, giving the Cardinals a win. “Today’s game was a battle of will, Plattsburgh out played us. Hats off to them on their senior day,” Stewart stated.
“This team was built from the ground up a couple years ago and I know we are all seeing the big results. I am so proud of all my teammates for doing the ‘dirty work’ with me and putting this program on the map,” second-year goalie Ryan Steinhart remarked. “By far the most memorable game was beating Oneonta on senior night. We knew we had the potential to take down some big teams in our conference and we were able to do it successfully.”
The Hawks are eagerly waiting for the next time they can take to the field and show off what they’ve been working for. “There is not much practice over the summer but we make sure to all be working individually,” Steinhart stated. “We have practices in the fall and we never stop working until we get the results we want.”
A bittersweet ending to the time and dedication these athletes have put into the season, and it’s unfortunate to not have secured a final win for the season. “We will prepare for next season by getting healthy first of all since we had some guys hurt to finish this year,” Reese stated. “We are so excited for the incoming freshmen, being able to add more talent will be huge for us and only make us better.”
