Men’s Golf
The men’s golf team competed at the Hershey Invitational from April 7-8, finishing the competition fourth out of 15 teams. After day one saw them finish in sixth place with a combined 311, the men dropped 10 strokes off that total with a 301 on day two, which was good enough to move them up two spots.
The top performer for the Violets was Stern first-year Chris Lee, who shot one-over-par 72 on day one and 77 on day two, finishing tied for sixth place individually. Lee’s performance was enough to earn him Performer of the Week designations on April 9. The Violets also got great outings from Stern first-year Joseph Burlison, who finished tied for 13th place, and Tisch sophomore Robbie Keyes, who finished tied for 20th place.
The men return to the green on April 27-28 when they compete in the Liberty League Championship in Verona, NY.
Men’s Volleyball
The men’s volleyball team began its hunt for the United Volleyball Conference (UVC) Championship this week with a strong performance against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology earlier in the week, but it was cut short after the team fell to Stevens Institute of Technology in the semifinals.
The Violets opened their postseason play against MIT on April 12 and had a dominant showing, defeating the New England school in straight sets (25-14, 25-21, 25-23). CAS junior Evan Lindley and Stern first-year James Haag led the team with nine kills apiece while CAS junior Matin Bikdeli finished with a team-high 32 assists.
With momentum on their side, the men took on Stevens Institute of Technology in the semifinals on April 13. After splitting the first two sets (17-25, 25-23), the men couldn’t sustain their momentum and lost the next two sets (25-20, 25-22), losing in four. Tandon junior Neil Ferraro and Lindley led NYU in the loss with 14 kills apiece, while Bikdeli led the team again with 41 assists.
This marks the end of the men’s volleyball season.
Men’s Tennis
The men’s tennis team split the two games they played this week with a win against Yeshiva University and a loss against Hobart College.
NYU faced Yeshiva on April 11 and completely dominated the game, winning the three doubles matches and six singles matches in a 9-0 shutout. Each NYU player won their respective matches while having not lost more than two sets.
The same energy seemed to be lacking when the Violets faced off against Hobart College in a close game that saw Hobart squeak by with a 5-4 win. NYU’s only doubles winners were CAS sophomore Lucas Biondi and Stern senior Ben Teoh. Biondi, CAS senior Yanik Parsch and CAS sophomore Rahul Das were the NYU singles to win matches.
NYU returns to the court on April 14 when they face the University of Rochester.
Women’s Tennis
The women’s tennis team was in the driver’s seat when it faced off against William Smith College on April 13, only giving up one singles set in a 8-1 win. CAS junior Coco Kulle, Stern senior Fleura Shiyanova, Stern sophomore Anna Maria Buraya and Stern junior Judy Kam were top performers for the team, winning both their respective doubles and singles matches.
The women return to the court on April 14 when they face the University of Rochester.
Baseball
The men’s baseball team played a familiar UAA rival multiple times this week, facing Washington University in St. Louis four different times in two separate doubleheaders.
WashU got the best of NYU in the first doubleheader on April 12, sweeping the Violets after winning 2-12 in the first game and 4-5 in the second game.
The Violets wouldn’t let their losses go unavenged when they took care of WashU in their second doubleheader of the week on April 13, sweeping the two games 8-6 and 4-2. In the first game, SPS senior Colman Hendershot and McLaughlin had three hits apiece while CAS senior Jack Elias contributed two hits and two RBIs. The second game remained tied at two until the eighth inning, when CAS sophomore Chris Cassandra broke the stalemate with a double that scored two runs, which ended up making the difference.
NYU returns to the ballpark on April 17 when it faces St. Joseph’s College Brooklyn.
Softball
The women’s softball team also faced a familiar UAA rival multiple times this week with similar results as the baseball team. The women split the four games in the two doubleheaders they played against Emory University this week.
The first doubleheader took place on April 12, where NYU lost a heartbreaker in the first game (4-5) but retaliated with a win in the second game (5-2). In the nightcap victory, Stern senior and pitcher Karissa Zubulake had a great showing, only giving up four hits and no earned runs.
The two teams faced off again for a doubleheader on April 13, but this time NYU struck first with a win in the first game (5-2) and then dropped the second game (3-4). Stefanelli and Ponciano played well again in the first game of the doubleheader, contributing two hits each which led to a win.
The women return to action on April 19-20 with doubleheaders against Washington University in St. Louis.
Track and Field
The track and field team returned to action during its outdoor season on April 12-13 when it competed at the Coach P Invitational hosted by Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. There was no scoring at the meet.
For the men, SPS junior Julian Montilus had a strong third-place finish in the 400m hurdles while his brother, SPS senior Malcolm Montilus also placed third in the 400m. Distance runners showed out, with GLS junior Ben Karam taking fourth in the 1,500m and SPS senior Brandon Shirazi taking fifth in the 5,000m. CAS junior Carter Beardsley had his own strong performances in the shot put, where he finished seventh, and the hammer throw, where he finished eighth.
CAS junior Evelyn Nkanga had the best highlight for the women Violets, finishing fourth in the 200m dash with a personal-best time. Gallatin first-year Valentina House had a personal-best run in the 5,000m, finishing eighth. There were also solid distance runs in the 800m from CAS first-year Gabi Stankosh (15th place) and CAS first-year Anna Cuciurean-Zapan (19th place).
The track team returns to action on April 19 when it is slated to compete at the Greyhound Invitational in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
A version of this article appeared in the Monday, April 15, 2019, print edition. Email Zach Han at [email protected].
