Cross Country

The men’s and women’s cross country teams had a historic run at the UAA Championships, with both teams taking home the top title on Saturday, Nov. 1. The win marks the men’s second consecutive title and the women’s second in three years. 

The women’s team took over five of the top 10 spots in the individual rankings, including a first-place finish in the 6K from sophomore Ashlyn Pallotta, with a time of 21:00.8. Pallotta’s win marks the second women’s solo title in Violet history. NYU’s last first-place win came from current assistant coach Grace Richardson in 2023, when the Violets also won the UAA Championship. 

First-year Theodore Udelson-Nee also brought home a first-place finish for the men’s team. Udelson-Nee outpaced the second-place runner by just 0.3 seconds, earning the first individual title for the Violets in the men’s 8K since the 2006-07 season. 

The women’s team enters the NCAA Tournament ranked No. 5 in the nation, and the men’s team ranked as No. 6. Both teams will take on the NCAA Niagara Region Championship on Nov. 15 in Rochester, NY. 

Fencing 

The men’s fencing team opened its season on Sunday, Oct. 26 at the Nikki Franke Classic hosted by Temple University in Philadelphia. 

First-year Szymon Wojciechowski had the Violets’ highest finish, closing out the competition with a seventh-place ranking in epee. Wojciechowski lost 15-13 in the quarterfinals, falling just short of the final four. 

In foil, senior Farr Dickson led NYU in 11th of 79 fencers after a 15-6 to the University of Pennsylvania. NYU didn’t fare as well in saber, with their top fencer, senior Matthew Zhou, placing 30th of 77. 

Later this month, the men’s and women’s teams will travel to Long Island University to compete against its home team, as well as St. John’s University and Yale University. 

Soccer

On Sunday, Oct. 26, the men’s and women’s soccer teams were both defeated by Case Western Reserve University at home at Lubetkin Field in Newark, NJ, with a 1-0 loss for the men and a 2-0 loss for the women.

On Saturday, the men’s team went into its game against No. 2-ranked Washington University in St. Louis with a 3-1-9 record, but pulled off an upset to defeat the Bears 1-0.

Senior midfielder Terra Nagai managed to break the deadlock in the 20th minute off an assist from junior forward Keyon Namdar. The Violets controlled the first half, allowing WashU just three shots to take the 1-0 lead into the break.

 In the opening moments of the second half, first-year midfielder Kyle Sakalosky forced a good save from the Bears goalkeeper to prevent the Violets from grabbing a 2-0 lead. The team’s defense proved strong again, allowing just two more shots to seal the 1-0 victory.

In the second half of Saturday’s doubleheader, the women’s team — with an overall record of 9-3-4 — was defeated by No. 1-ranked WashU in a 3-1 loss.

In just under five minutes, junior forward Carmen Cicerini found the back of the net to put the Violets up 1-0. In a defensive first half that saw just five combined shots between the two teams, NYU took a one-goal lead at the break. 

The Violets managed to keep their lead until the 55th minute, and shortly conceded a second just five minutes later. Sophomore forward Marlee Scanlon held the Violets’ best chance of a second-half win, drawing a tough save from the Bears’ goalkeeper. With four minutes left to play, WashU added its third goal of the game and saw out the 3-1 victory.

Both the men’s and women’s teams take the field one for their final regular season home games on Saturday. The Violets will take on Brandeis University and celebrate Senior Day.

Swimming & Diving

On Friday, Oct. 31, the women’s swimming and diving team traveled to Division I Columbia University for a 16-event meet. The men’s team also traveled uptown for a scrimmage against Columbia the day after. 

NYU earned first-place finishes in seven events, including the 100-yard freestyle and 200-yard butterfly. Standout senior Kaley McIntyre showed up for the Violets, leading in three events, including the 200-yard freestyle relay and the 100-yard freestyle. First-year Maeve O’Donnell also stood out, earning her second career first-place finish with a 56.91-second time in the 100-yard backstroke. 

Despite the team’s strong performance, the Violets were outmatched by Columbia’s Lions and fell below with a 170-130 team ranking. 

The men’s and women’s teams will be back downtown on Friday for their home opener, the NYU Fall Invitational. The Violets will race against Drew University and Stevens Institute of Technology at the Palladium Athletic Facility. 

Volleyball 

The women’s volleyball team traveled to Chicago on Oct. 26 to compete in the UAA Round Robin #3, falling to both Case Western Reserve University and Carnegie Mellon University. 

In the first match, the Violets put up a fight but ultimately fell to CWRU. After a close first set, during which NYU dropped 25-23, the team rebounded with a 25-15 second set. CWRU took the lead back after the third set, and NYU proceeded to tie it up to force a fifth set. Despite a 4-0 run led by junior hitter Grace Nelson, the Violets fell 18-16 in the final set. 

The Violets fared worse against the No. 25-ranked Carnegie team, giving up three straight sets 25-10, 25-23, and 25-20. Strong performances from senior Ava Launsbach, who had 18 assists against the Tartans, and junior Chloe Lemons, with 10 kills, weren’t enough to outmatch the team.

NYU bounced back on Saturday, with a pair of matches at home to celebrate Senior Day. Five seniors — Launsbach, Kaitlyn Sato, Jessica Spierenburg, Sarah Lattan and Eveliena Pasmooij — were honored ahead of the game against John Jay College. 

NYU won its first match against Randolph-Macon College 3-1, where Spierenburg led the Violets in kills and aces, Launsbach led in assists, and Sato led in digs. The first match was followed by a 3-0 sweep against John Jay, the senior class’ final home game and 100th win. 

The Violets will travel to Galloway, NJ, for their final match of the regular season against Stockton University on Saturday, followed by the start of the UAA championship the following week. 

Wrestling 

The wrestling team kicked off its season on Saturday with a win at the Ned McGinley Invitational at King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, PA. 

Two wrestlers, sophomore Alexander Diaz in the 125-pound weight class and senior Jacob Venezia in the 133-pound weight-class, came out on top of their brackets, and NYU finished first of 12 teams overall. Two more Violets, first-year Cristian Gioia and sophomore James Carlock in the 174-pound and 141-pound weight class, respectively, made it to the final round of their brackets and finished as runner-ups. 

The team will return to Pennsylvania on Saturday for the Racich Rumble hosted by Ursinus College in Collegeville.

Contact Kiran Komanduri and Naseem Rahman at [email protected].