New Paltz, NY – The State University of New York at New Paltz picked up its play on the glass in the second half against Alfred University Tuesday. Disappointed with its effort in the first 20 minutes, the Hawks (7-2 overall) came out more aggressive on the boards, which churned a dominant second-half effort that propelled the eventual 80-47 victory.

Philesha Teape was the x-factor during the opening minutes of the third quarter with SUNY New Paltz holding a thin five-point cushion at the break. Teape made sure to stay aggressive on the glass and pulled down three quick boards that helped establish a 9-0 run to begin the period. Olivia Badura, Paige Niemeyer and Maddie Van Pelt knocked down shots in the stretch to help shift the momentum and keep a double-digit cushion to earn the win and remain unbeaten at home.

"Going into the half we really focused on crashing the offensive boards, because we were missing a lot of our outside shots," said SUNY New Paltz freshman guard Lexi Van Vorst. "We really harped on that at halftime and then we were able to come in in the second half and crash better. Phil had a lot of offensive rebounds in the first couple minutes of the third quarter, which really helped pick us all up."

Playing a career-high 22 minutes Tuesday, Van Vorst worked out of a slow start to her season and lit up the scoreboard in the third and fourth quarters to help her team pull away. Her minutes were needed as SUNY New Paltz fought early foul trouble and she delivered with 18 points, three assists and two steals, while shooting 6-for-14 from the floor, including 5-for-11 from 3-point range.

"We know Lexi can score. She can put the ball in the basket and she can shoot and score, but she made a play defensively late in the game in high help off the ball and that is what we need out of her," said Hawks coach Jamie Seward. "If she is able to defend then her offensive game is going to happen because that is who she is. To me that really was the best thing that we saw out of her. She has really had a hard time the last 10 days, two weeks and be as low as you can be at this point in her college career and yet, yesterday she really fought back. I said something at shoot around this morning about that, 'It is good to see you fight back.' I think it was a harbinger of the way she played today."
 

The game was tight off the opening tip. The Saxons (4-7 overall) gained an early 6-2 lead before Marion Dietz knocked down a trey with more than six minutes left in the first period to give SUNY New Paltz back a one-point advantage. Van Pelt scored on the following possession with Dietz earning the ball back for her team. Dietz slyly picked the pocket of Alfred's Lyndsey McCoy, scooped up the loose ball around midcourt and laid in an easy fast-break bucket to push the cushion to five midway through the period. The basket also officially enshrined Dietz in the Hawks' 1,000th point club, joining alums Alex McCullough ('13), Jasmine Sanchez ('99), Robin Shields (00'), Lindsay Bettke and Kit Small ('17).

Alfred ended the period strong however, and took a 17-16 lead at the end of the first quarter. The visitors held on to the advantage until midway through the second period after the Hawks tied the score twice before finally getting over the hump with about 5:30 remaining in the half. Niemeyer registered a steal off a full court press and tapped the loose ball out to Dietz running the floor to push them ahead, 28-26. The Saxons immediately gave the ball back and on the ensuing offensive possession SUNY New Paltz capitalized, as Niemeyer found Van Pelt on a back cut to the basket for two. Van Vorst was subbed in and quickly helped pile on, knocking down a long ranged 3-pointer to get the difference to seven. A pair of made free throws by Alfred in the final seconds ended the run and cut the score, 33-28 at halftime.

"I've had a pretty low last three weeks, not playing my best so it felt really good to come out there and do what I [know] how to do, and finally gain some confidence back," said Van Vorst. Teape kept the Hawks energy high to open up the third, coming away with back-to-back offensive boards that led to a pair of 3's by Badura and Niemeyer. Alfred struggled to find the bottom of the hoop and Teape made sure not to allow the opposition any second-chance opportunities. She pulled down another rebound, which aided in SUNY New Paltz's 9-0 run with Van Pelt and Badura adding on.

Teape picked up consecutive fouls midway through the third to give her four for the game, which ultimately cut her night short for the rest of the outing. Despite playing about 13 minutes, she contributed four boards and a steal, while helping establish the Hawks' momentum for the rest of the game.

"She is really a huge difference maker for this team, because she has such amazing energy and presence about her," Seward said. "So when she's on the floor and able to play, it's not just yeah, she's a tremendous offensive rebounder and everything that comes along with that, but it is more the presence that she has as a leadership standpoint. On this team it is so vital for us to have that and have her out there. We need her to be smarter and stay on the floor, but again, her presence to start the second half was really what kind of set the tone."

A 3-pointer by McCoy gave the Saxons life with two minutes left in the third to cut the deficit 48-40, but the Hawks answered to build back the double-figure cushion once again. Following an Alfred turnover, Van Vorst drained another shot from the perimeter to get the lead back to 11. SUNY New Paltz then closed the door in the fourth, holding the Saxons to just five points, forcing seven turnovers in the period and limiting them to just 1-for-13 from the floor.

The Hawks held a slight advantage on the glass, 41-38, and shot slightly better (35.1-32.7 percent), but dominated in turnover differential. They forced Alfred into 30 turnovers – a season-high – while the Hawks had just 11 turnovers in the game.

Dietz finished with a team-high 19 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals, followed by Niemeyer who registered 15 points, seven rebounds, five assists, two blocks and three steals. Van Pelt recorded her second straight double-double, ending with 10 points and 12 rebounds.

Although SUNY New Paltz came away with the eventual 33-point victory, the team reiterated upping its play and overcoming lackluster starts, especially on the boards and on the defensive end. The Hawks next play a tough conference rival in SUNY Oneonta Saturday and hope to re-group in the coming days at practice to have a sharper performance against the Red Dragons.

"I've been telling them, and I've been really careful how the way I've said it, but… You can't wait until you walk into the gym. You can't wait until the first drill of practice or the first scrimmage of practice, or in a game when the ball goes up. You have to have that mindset when you walk into the building and I think it's that focus, attention to detail and the energy that comes along with having that focus," Seward said. "Knowing that this is it. This play matters. There's no warming into it. There is not an on and off switch. You either bring it or you don't, and we really struggled with that as of late. We got a couple days to get to work. We have a big rival going into their place where we know it is going to be tough to play and we know we are going to have a very difficult team on our hands. We have a lot of work to do, but fortunately we have a couple days and hopefully we take advantage."

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