On one of the best days for SUNY New Paltz athletics in recent memory, both the Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams won SUNY Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) championships on Saturday, Feb. 24, 2024.
While the end result was the same, the two titles were the culmination of two entirely unique journeys for these teams.
For the Women, the 2024 SUNYAC championship further cemented a dynasty under Head Coach Jamie Seward, who led the Hawks to their seventh title since 2012-13 and their fourth in five years.
The 2023-24 team dominated all season long, building a 24-3 record (17-1 in conference) and earning the No. 1 seed in the playoffs, which ensured that they would play for the trophy in front of home fans. They took care of business at the Hawk Center with a tough 52-47 win over SUNY Geneseo.
“This team has grown in ways that ultimately lead to winning basketball games,” Seward said. “They’re passionate, they care a lot, and they compete really hard. It’s what we’ve always tried to build in the program here. We’ve had teams that have embodied that over the years, and I feel like this team has that drive as well.”
It was a different story for the 2023-24 Men’s team, which brought home the program’s first-ever SUNYAC title.
This is a program that has been steadily building for years under Head Coach Keith Kenney, and that hard work culminated with a 20-7 record (12-6 in conference) that was good for the playoff No. 2 seed and a first-round bye. They overcame SUNY Oswego, the national No. 5 seed in Division III, in a thrilling 85-80 road victory.
“We got really close last year, and I think the experience of going through that as a group, and also adding some new guys who have been through these wars, is what led to our ‘no-panic’ approach,” Kenney said. “That’s probably what I’m most proud of with this team. These guys just have a great attitude, it’s an unbelievable group of young men.”
Both teams were led by seniors who have been emerging as all-time Hawks athletes over the last few years. For the Women, that story begins with Brianna Fitzgerald ’24 (Marketing), who became the first two-time All-American in team history. She earned SUNYAC Player of the Year honors and was joined on the All-SUNYAC team by Jenny Walton ’24 (Biology) and Abby Korzekwinski ’24 (Early Childhood Education).
The Men’s side got outstanding seasons from guards A.J. Knight ’25 (Psychology) and Rylan Blondo ’23 ’24g (Business Administration), both of whom earned All-SUNYAC honors. Their playoff run was powered as well by key contributions from Kobe Bogart ’24g (Business Administration), who took home Tournament MVP honors and led all scorers in the championship game.
Hawks fans! Stay up to date with the latest scores and highlights from SUNY New Paltz’s 16 varsity teams on Instagram @newpaltzhawks, YouTube on the New Paltz Hawks channel and our homepage, nphawks.com.
