Cross Country
The men’s and women’s cross country teams sent runners to compete in both the Vassar Season Starter at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, NY and the USC Upstate Eye Opener in Spartanburg, SC on Friday, Aug. 29.
In Poughkeepsie, the women’s team finished first of six teams in the 3K event. Sophomore Eliza Dickie, the top finisher for the Violets, placed second overall in her first collegiate race with a time of 11:02.3. NYU had seven other runners in the top 20, including third-place finisher sophomore Katharine Frank, who made it onto the podium just 0.3 seconds ahead of the fourth-place runner with a time of 11:05.1.
The men’s team fared similarly in the 4K with an overall first-place finish and all but one of their eight participating athletes ranking in the top 20. First-year James Jenkins earned a spot on the podium with a 12:41.4 time, finishing third overall. NYU also completed the race with runners in sixth, seventh and eighth.
Over in Spartanburg, the women’s team finished third out of 10 teams, and the men’s team finished fourth out of 13 teams. Junior Josephine Dziedzic led the women’s team in the 5K with a time of 18:08.7, placing her in tenth, and sophomore Ashlyn Pallotta followed closely behind in 12th place with a time of 18:18.6. Junior Liam Hagerty was the men’s top performer in the 8K with a 17th-place finish and a time of 25:15.2.
Both teams will travel upstate on Saturday, Sept. 13, for the Jasper Fall XC Invitational hosted by Manhattan College in Montgomery, NY.
Soccer
The No. 17-ranked women’s soccer team started its season off strong with a 2-1 record.
NYU defeated Mount Saint Mary College 6-0 on Aug. 29, at Kaplan Field in Newburgh, NY.
Junior Alexa Buxbaum led the team with goals, scoring two in the first half. First-year Sydney Freese, junior Sonia Neighbors and seniors Rena Kalagrios and Yukino Wakatsuki added goals later in the game. Freese also contributed with two assists.
Later that weekend, the Violets fell short to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps College, losing 2-0 on Aug. 31 in Newark, NJ. Despite having more possession and more shots in the first half, NYU could not capitalize on the pressure and conceded the first goal in the 33rd minute. CMS’s Frankie Fragola scored her second right before the hour mark.
Neighbors led NYU with two shots on goal, while junior midfielder Sari Frankl missed a close shot late in the game and was unable to find a consolation goal for the Violets.
The team rebounded with a 4-2 win over The College of New Jersey on Sept. 6 in the first game of the TCNJ Classic at Lion’s Stadium in Ewing, NJ.
In an end-to-end match, Frankl put the Violets on the board in the first half off an assist from Buxbaum. Sophomore Marlee Scanlon added another goal with help from junior Carmen Cicerini, before second-half goals from Buxbaum and Cicerini secured the win.
The Violets faced Arcadia University in their second game of the TCNJ Classic on Sunday, Sept. 7, and will be back in action on Wednesday, Sept. 10, at Stevens.
The men’s team is 0-2 so far this season with a pair of close losses.
NYU fell 4-3 to Rowan University in its Aug. 29 home opener at the Mal Simon Stadium in Newark, NJ.
Rowan struck twice early, but the Violets rallied to even the score by the half. Senior Terra Nagai scored in the 15th minute, assisted by first-year Audric Ma. Graduate student Ethan Zarka tied it up in the 38th minute with a direct free kick outside the penalty box.
Even after a consolation goal from Demir Calkap in the final minute of the game, the team failed to come back for the second time.
The Violets then suffered a 3-2 loss to Vassar College on Aug. 31 at Gordon Field in Poughkeepsie, NY.
Vassar came out strong in the first half, but NYU answered in the second half with two goals by Terra Nagai and Ethan Zarka — the latter scored a direct free kick in his second consecutive match. With a tied match and the clock running out, NYU conceded from a Brewers’ corner kick, breaking Violet’s hearts.
The Violets were scheduled to face Rutgers-Camden on Sept. 6th, but the match was canceled due to adverse weather. They will next host Stockton University in a home match at Lubetkin Field in Newark, NJ on Sept. 8th at 7:00 p.m.
Volleyball
The women’s volleyball team claimed three victories in its opening three home games of the new season. With a victory over Gallaudet University on Friday, Sept. 5, and back-to-back victories over Susquehanna and Stevens on Saturday, Sept. 6, the Violets improved to a 4-2 record this season.
In its home opener against Gallaudet on Friday, the No. 23-ranked NYU squad claimed a straight-sets victory on the first day of the NYU Home-Opener Invitational at the Paulson Center. 2024 UAA Rookie of the Year and sophomore Chloe Hynes recorded a match-high 17 kills and two blocks as the Violets took all three sets 25-20, 25-17 and 25-19.
The next day, the team was back for a doubleheader. In its first match, NYU dominated early against Susquehanna, taking the first set 25-13. The team did not take its foot off the gas, closing out the second and third sets 25-8 and 25-9. Junior Grace Nelson had a game-high eight kills and six aces en route to a victory. Fellow junior Chloe Lemons and first-year Stella Dillon each contributed to the win with seven kills each.
In its second matchup of the day, NYU found similar success against Stevens. However, the Violets were met with more resistance this time. After an overwhelming first set victory of 25-9, the second set was a closer 28-26 win. NYU then saw out the straight-set victory with a 25-16 win.
Hynes once again hit the stat sheet, recording 11 kills and three blocks in the impressive win. Junior Coco Barton showed out, recording seven kills along with two blocks to help propel the Violets to victory.
Next up, the team will compete in the NYU Violet Invitational at the Paulson Center, where it plays Amherst College on Friday, Sept. 12, at 7:00 p.m., and Christopher Newport University on Saturday, Sept. 13, at 12:30 p.m.
Contact the Sports Desk at [email protected].
