A recap of NYU sports over the week of Nov. 5th.
Men’s soccer was rewarded with an NCAA Tournament bid after finishing 12-4-1 over the regular season.
The underdog Violets held their own against the Centennial Conference champion Haverford College in a hard fought matchup that went down to the wire, as they narrowly won the game by a single penalty kick 5-4 after 110 minutes of deadlocked gameplay at one apiece. Haverford drew first blood as it scored early in the second half to gain a one-goal lead. The Violets fought to tie up the score, which came when SPS junior Sergio Monton scored with less than three minutes in regulation. The following three overtime periods were characterized by strong defense by Haverford’s goalkeeper and NYU’s CAS senior and goalkeeper Grant Engel. With penalty kicks knotted up at 4-4, Stern first-year Isaiah Boyd scored a penalty kick in the seventh round while Engel denied the potential tying Haverford goal.
NYU will look to continue its postseason push when they host Montclair State on Nov. 11.
Women’s soccer received a bid to compete in the NCAA Tournament after going 10-5-3 in the regular season.
Unfortunately for the women’s team, its postseason march was cut short after losing a heartbreaker against Virginia Wesleyan University in overtime 1-0. The game was scoreless through 90 minutes of regulation where both teams’ offenses looked stagnant. Virginia Wesleyan caught NYU off-guard to begin the overtime period, resulting in a quick goal less than two minutes into the period, ending the game and NYU’s season. Stern sophomore and goalkeeper Meghan Marhan was stellar on defense for the entire game, but her one miscue proved to be the team’s downfall.
The women concluded the 2018 season with a 10-6-3 record and an NCAA tournament appearance.
The men’s basketball team opened up the 2018 season strong with a win against Purchase College in Head Coach Dagan Nelson’s debut on Nov. 9.
After trailing Purchase 31-43 by halftime, the Violets began to show signs of life as they stormed back using a 15-2 run to knot the score up at 55. The game stayed close but NYU found a way to pull away with the lead in the closing minutes of regulation. CAS first-year Alex Casieri, CAS sophomore Bobby Hawkinson and SPS senior Jule Brown all finished the game with 21 points apiece. Overall, the Violets shot 51.8 percent from the field and 44.4 percent from three-point range.
The men will look to continue their hot start when they host the NYU Tip-Off Tournament on Nov. 17. Their opening-round opponent will be Sarah Lawrence College.
Women’s basketball fell short in its season opener and Head Coach Meg Barber’s debut on Nov. 11, falling 43-53 to the College of Staten Island.
The biggest issue of the game for NYU was on the offensive side of the ball, where the Violets seemed to be unable to gain any kind of flow. While CAS sophomore Lauren Koyama carried a bulk of the offense on her shoulders by scoring 15 points, the Violets struggled as a team from the field, shooting only 23.5 percent from three-point range. CAS junior Annie Barrett did it all on the floor, leading NYU with seven rebounds and seven assists.
The women will look to bounce back in their second game of the year when they take on the College of Mount Saint Vincent on Nov. 17.
The men’s cross Country team competed in the NCAA Atlantic Regional Championship 8K on Nov. 11, finishing ninth out of 44 teams with a score of 233. Leading the way for the Violets was Tisch senior Ben Haderle, who finished 18th out of 307 runners. Haderle’s performance garnered him All-Region honors and earned him a spot to run as an individual in the NCAA Division III National Championship on Nov. 17. This is Haderle’s first appearance at the National Championship, which will be his final race in his collegiate cross country career.
The women’s cross country team finished with a 24th-place finish at the NCAA Atlantic Regional Championship 6K on Nov. 11. Leading the way for the women was Gallatin first-year Valentina House, placing 52nd out of 305 runners.
This meet marked the conclusion of the NYU cross country season.
After compiling an 18-16 record over the regular season under first-year Head Coach Andrew Brown, women’s volleyball was selected to compete in the Eastern College Athletic Conference Division III Championship after finished sixth in the UAA.
To begin the tournament, NYU hosted Mount Saint Mary University on Nov. 7, where the Violets put on an absolute clinic and won the match in three convincing sets (25-12, 25-17, 25-16). Leading the offensive attack for the Violets were CAS first-year Emily Kleck and Gallatin first-year Maddie DeJong, finishing together with seven kills. Overall, NYU had a balanced offense that worked cohesively and drove it into the quarterfinals.
The women’s dominant start to the ECAC Tournament continued in the quarterfinals when they shut out Misericordia University in another three convincing straight sets (25-17, 25-21, 25-18). Tisch first-year Abby Amusus led NYU with nine kills, Tandon first-year Stella Alverson led the team with 15 assists and CAS sophomore Jacqueline Kupeli had a team-high 16 digs.
NYU will host Cabrini University in a semifinal matchup on Nov. 11. The winner will advance to the championship on the same day.
NYU accumulated 93.5 points en route to a fifth place finish out of 12 teams at the Roger Williams University Invitational on Nov. 10.
Leading the way for the Violets was Stern junior and team captain Sean Lyons, who took home the 157-pound title after he won all of his five bouts, one by way of fall and two by way of major decision. His highlight of the weekend was obliterating Roger William’s Tyler Gazaway in the championship 18-4. Going into the tournament, Gazaway was ranked seventh in the nation in his weight class. Other than Lyons, NYU had four other grapplers making it into the finals of their respective weight classes, all finishing as runner-ups.
NYU wrestling returns to action on Nov. 18 when they travel to Ithaca to partake in the New York State Championships.