NEW PALTZ, N.Y.—The 11th-ranked Hobart volleyball team fell in a five-set conference thriller at New Paltz this evening. The Statesmen fall to 17-4 overall with an 0-2 mark in the UVC, while the Hawks move to 6-8 overall and 1-0 in conference play.

The back-and-forth conference battle saw New Paltz hold a 58-45 edge in kills as the Hawks hit .225 collectively as a team compared to the Statesmen's .177 hitting percentage. New Paltz tallied 56 assists compared to Hobart's 40 and also held an 8-4 edge in service aces. The Hawks held an 11-7 advantage in blocks in the UVC thriller.

Graduate student Andrew Kim led Hobart with his third double-double of the season as he recorded 16 kills (.231) and 13 digs in the loss. Kim added three blocks, two service aces and an assist for the Statesmen. Sophomore Noah DeLong chipped in 10 kills (.259), four digs, two assists and one block, while classmate Daniel Sappia added eight kills (.261), 10 digs, one block, one service ace and one assist in the setback.

Geoff Ndoria led New Paltz with 15 kills (.419), seven digs, three blocks and an assist this evening. Nikko Tenedorio chipped in a double-double with 14 kills (.200) and 10 digs. Matt Marusza tallied a match-high 50 assists in the win.

MATCH MOMENTS:

• New Paltz came out hot in the opening set and combined for 14 kills (.276) as a team while holding Hobart to just six kills (.040). The Statesmen were plagued by errors in set one and tallied five hitting errors and eight service errors handing the Hawks a 25-21 win to open the match.
• Hobart responded well in the second set and put down 10 kills as a team, hitting .269 collectively. New Paltz tallied 11 kills (.061) but racked up nine hitting errors as the Statesmen block stepped up big. A Hawks service error and a Sappia kill closed out the second set with a 25-20 win for Hobart.
• The Statesmen continued on their momentum in the third set as they combined for 11 kills (.333) as a team. Despite the Hawks tallying 13 kills (.276) in the third, Hobart found crucial points from the service line and from its block to sneak away with a 25-21 win in set three.
• Both teams' offenses stepped up in the fourth set as Hobart put down a match-high 15 kills (.290) while New Paltz matched that with a match-high 14 kills (.300). The Statesmen shot out to an early 15-9 lead before the Hawks stormed back and tied the game up at 19-19. New Paltz used the momentum from its late push to close out the fourth on top 25-22, forcing a decisive fifth set.
• The Hawks continued to push in the fifth set and shot out to a 10-7 lead in the final set. New Paltz used its momentum and a big block that collected four blocks in the fifth set to maintain its lead. The Hawks put down six kills (.235) in the fifth set and held the Statesmen to a match-low three kills (-.167) to close out the conference matchup on top with a 15-10 win in the decisive fifth set.

MATCH STATS:

• Kim led Hobart with 16 kills, hitting .231 through five sets. DeLong chipped in 10 kills (.259), while Sappia added eight kills (.261) in the conference loss.
• Sophomore Zack Farren and graduate student Benjamin Lincoln led the Statesmen from the setter position and tallied 18 and 17 assists each, respectively. Farren added eight digs and a kill for Hobart.
• The Statesmen combined for 46 digs as a team and were led by Kim with 13. Sappia chipped in 10 digs, while Farren added eight in the five-set thriller.
• Hobart recorded seven total blocks as a team and was led by first-year Alain Malcolm with four. Kim and first-year Kian Kischke added three blocks each in the setback.

UP NEXT:
 
Hobart will be back in action tomorrow to conclude its eight-match road trip with a UVC matchup against No. 1 NYU. Action between the Statesmen and the Violets is set for 2 p.m. in John A. Paulson Center