Cards sweep Devils on Senior Day

The Plattsburgh Cardinals played its last series of the season against the SUNYAC opponent Fredonia Blue Devils last weekend, playing one game Friday, May 5 and a doubleheader May 6. The Cardinals, though eliminated from the playoffs, ended the season with a bang, sweeping the Blue Devils. Plattsburgh won 5-2, 3-0 and 13-0. These were one of the final games of the season, and for some players it was the final game of their Plattsburgh careers.

Softball

This was a great sendoff for graduate pitcher Sean Malamud, who had been pitching well all season and continued that during his final start Friday. Malamud gave up two runs en route to a victory. When the team needed him most, he showed up and never buckled under the pressure of being the pitcher.

“It’s been a fun two years, you know, transferring over here from my old school, nothing but fun that’s all I gotta say, it’s a good way to go out,” Malamud said.

Malamud transferred from Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and during his time at Plattsburgh, he has found a place to call home. Malamud had a 4-4 record this year with an ERA of 4.04.

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Conner Gonzalski was another Cardinal senior that was gearing up for the end of his Plattsburgh career. Gonzalski played all four years at Plattsburgh and was a huge asset to the team.

“Means a lot, the relationships I’ve made here. Playing with all the boys every day, means so much, everything about it,” Gonzalski said.

Gonzalski recorded one hit and two RBI’s in the 5-2 win Saturday. These were crucial runs for the team. Gonzalski had 28 hits and

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The two-game sweep lowered Plattsburgh’s chances of taking a top-three seed in a field of six.

The losses put the Cards below the Knights and the four-seeded Buffalo State Bengals (23-14, SUNYAC 12-6). Now locked into the fifth seed, Plattsburgh needed the Brockport wins for momentum. The Cardinals took them both in a big way.

“Our hitting came alive. We worked on being patient at the plate and waiting for our pitch,” Golino wrote in a text. “Hitting is contagious and once one person hits, we all start to hit.”

The Cards pitched phenomenally against the Eagles. Between Golino, Kristina Maggiacomo and Morgan Ormerod, the Cardinals threw 16 strikeouts and earned just three runs. Big hitting performances came from Golino and outfielder Kristen Langdon, who had five and three runs batted in, respectively.

The team needed to keep strong batting up to make headway in the playoffs. Maggiacomo emphasized “timely hitting.”

The wins instilled a drive in the team headed into the first round of postseason games.

15 runs this season.

Andrew Veit, a senior, was a transfer student from Saint Peter’s University in Jersey City, New Jersey, and spent three seasons in Plattsburgh. He played shortstop and pitcher, a really well-rounded player. Veit had many starts for the Cardinals this season, posting a 3-4 record and a 5.69 ERA.

“Oh man, it meant the world, this wasn’t my first school, but I came here and I knew I was right at home, and I wouldn’t change a thing about it,” Viet said.

“I think we just need to be confident in ourselves and know how good of a team we are,” infielder Claire Palmer said. “We need to take it game-by-game, play-byplay, inning-by-inning.”

Playoffs

The Cards entered the first round against a familiar opponent. Plattsburgh had history on its side against second-seeded Cortland after a dominant sweep earlier this season. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the momentum didn’t translate into a win.

Maggiacomo started in the circle, her 16th start of the season. On the season, Maggiacomo led Cardinal pitchers in ERA with 2.83, strikeouts with 110 and innings pitched with 106.1.

Cortland struck first, scoring a run in the first inning. A Golino double in the third inning brought in two runners, taking the only Plattsburgh lead of the game at 2-1. The Red Dragons scored twice in the fifth to take a 3-2 lead, which the Cardinals never responded to.

Golino had two hits and was just one of two Cards to record one. Through six innings, Maggiacomo struck out five Red Drag-

Head Coach Sam QuinnLoeb was proud of the way his seniors played.

“This year they played well, can’t ask much more from these guys. Obviously Sean had a great start today. He's had a good two years here. Conner, he's been here four years. He’s given us everything, clutch hits throughout his four years. Andrew Veit, he’s been a mainstay at shortstop and on the mound the last couple years,” QuinnLoeb said.

This season ends in disappointment for the Car- ons and earned only three of the four runs.

The loss didn’t eliminate Plattsburgh from the playoffs. In the structure of the tournament, the Cardinals would have to face the loser between Oneonta and the New Paltz Hawks (30-11, SUNYAC 162). Oneonta lost, setting up the Cards and Dragons for an afternoon sudden death game.

Golino earned the start this game, as she typically fills in for Maggiacomo in the second game of a series. Golino has been money all year, winning 10 of 13 games she’s started.

The Cardinals scored first, when Maggiacomo hit a sacrifice fly to the center fielder, bringing Langdon home. At the top of the fifth inning, Oneonta hit a double to bring in two scores, taking a lead at 2-1. Maggiacomo, in the same inning, hit a single, allowing Langdon to score again. The game went to an eighth inning, dinals, but those who are leaving the team appear to be content with their careers here. The team reached the playoffs last season for the first time in a decade. This year, the Cards couldn’t find conference wins when it needed it this season. With talent headed out the door, it’s up to the new veterans and the underclassmen to deliver this squad back to the postseason. but ended when an Oneonta run went unanswered.

The season didn’t end the way Plattsburgh wanted it to, but it has a lot to look back and be proud of. In the face of COVID-19 and in Van Dorn’s third season, the team is on the right track. Though seniors like Golino, Maggiacomo and Langdon are saying goodbye, the team is deep enough to be back again next season.

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Day Two

Day two of SUNYACs included the conclusion of the decathlon and the heptathlon; the final short-, mid- and longdistance runs; relay and hurdles runs; and the rest of the field events.

Gilbo finished the decathlon, completing the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 17.15, the 1,500-meter run with a time of 4:51.21, the discus throw with a measurement of 27.62 meters, the pole vault with a measurement of 2.50 meters and the javelin throw with a measurement of 34.92 meters. Gilbo placed ninth out of nine competitors overall, with a score of 4,889.

DeLuc and Bergé both finished the heptathlon. DeLuc competed in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:43.62, the long jump with a measurement of 4.96 meters and the javelin throw with a measurement of 22.38 meters. Bergé did not finish the 800.

Bergé finished the long jump with a measurement of 4.09 meters and the javelin throw with a measurement of 13.64 meters. DeLuc placed fourth out of seven competitors with a score of 3,539, and Bergé finished seventh with a score of 2,192.

Plattsburgh had runners in two different distance events, including the 5,000-meter run and the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Marissa Colvin from the women’s team finished the 5,000 with a time of 19:38.28, and Logan Van Buren from the men’s team finished it with a time of 16:21.31. Two Cardinals recorded times in the steeplechase, including Ginny Lucchetti with a time of 12:55.50 and Erik Kucera with a time of 9:54.38. The Cardinals had a team in each relay event. In the women’s 4x100meter, Schaffer, Morgan Thompson, Deanna Zoch and Jasmine Piper had a time of 51:00. In the men’s 4x100-meter, Jor- dan Williams, Charles Cypress, Cameron Giuliano and Masten had a time of 43.83. The men’s 4x400meter featured Justin Kumrow, Nick Gelsomino, Cypress and Bonesteel, who recorded a collective time of 3:30.01. The women’s 4x400-meter featured Thompson, McDonough, Piper and Lucchetti, who recorded a collective time of 4:24.46.

Barber was the only Cardinal to compete in a hurdles final. Alongside her secondplace finish in the 400-meter hurdles, she finished the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 15.12.

Plattsburgh fielded competitors in two different short-distance events. In the 100-meter dash, behind Montville’s second-place finish, Cypress had a time of 10.87 and Williams had a time of 11.02. In the 200-meter dash, Montville finished with a time of 22.20 and Cypress finished with a time of 22.45.

Two Cardinals ran in two mid-distance events, including McDonough’s win. Bonesteel was the lone Cardinal in the 1,500-meter run, finishing with a time of 3:59.86.

Teams ended the day with field events. Plattsburgh had four athletes record measurements in three different events: Schaffer in the triple jump with a measurement of 10.67 meters, Piper in the discus throw with a measurement of 36.10 meters, Becca Christie in the high jump with a measurement of 1.47 meters and Bjelko in the shot put with a measurement of 12.71 meters. Aidan Tous was slated to participate in the shot put and discus throw, but was unable to attend SUNYACs because of an illness, and received a “did not start”.

2023 Season

After McDonough crossed the finish line first during the 800-meter run, the first emotion she felt wasn’t pride or accomplishment, but rather one of relief. This moment was a long time coming for her.

suffering because of that. I was just very anxious and nervous before every race,” McDonough said. “I have very high expectations for myself. I know the work I had been putting in wasn’t really equating to the times I was running.” of the ruts that I felt like I had been hitting just finally paid off and came together,” McDonough said. “I felt like I didn’t waste my time taking a fifth year, because I didn’t have to compete this year.” from people like Mikayla Khadijah, Marissa LeDuc, Charles Cypress, Tom Gilbo and many others.”

McDonough thinks back to the race she qualified for nationals in and how she “didn’t care about anything” during it. To prepare herself for races, McDonough has been attempting to “channel that energy” she felt, applying her care-free mentality to deal with her anxious feelings. She has also been journaling and repeating affirming mantras to put herself in the right mindset for competition.

Upcoming

Cardinals looking to compete in regionals have two more opportunities. Plattsburgh currently has two last-chance qualifying meets scheduled. The team will send athletes attempting to qualify to the CNY Fast Chance Meet in Utica, New York, hosted by Utica College May 14 or the Widener Final Qualifier in Chester, Pennsylvania, hosted by Widener University May 15.

McDonough has competed in the 800 in the SUNYAC indoor and outdoor championships and the AARTFC indoor and outdoor championships consistently since 2019. She qualified for the 800 in the DIII NCAA Indoor National Championships in 2022.

McDonough’s indoor gold win this season, her fifth and final year, was the first of her career. She recorded a time of 2:16.37 and qualified for regional competition at The Armory in New York City. In the regionals 800 a week later, she ran what she called the worst race of her life. Her time was almost six seconds slower, at 2:22.31.

“Going into this year, I feel like I just kind of let the pressure really build up and my mentality was

Anxiety is something McDonough has been dealing with since her senior season. She felt intense pressure before every competition. Her mind was on regionals before the first meet of the 2023 outdoor season.

As a fifth year student, McDonough knows one of her next races is her last. So do Cardinals like Bjelko and Tous. When she leaves the program, she knows it’s in good hands. Performances from first-year athletes in the SUNYACs like DeLuc’s and Cypress’ give support to that opinion.

Plattsburgh now turns its head to the next stage of competition: regionals. The program is sending 14 Cardinals to the AARTFC Championships at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania. The number is almost triple last year’s five qualifiers. Some Cardinals qualified for multiple events, but may not compete in them all.

Qualifiers include Barber in the 100-meter hurdles, the 400-meter hurdles and the 200-meter dash; Bjelko in shot put; Bonesteel in the 800-meter run and the 1,500-meter run; Brockway in the 10,000-meter run; Cypress in the 100-meter run and the 200-meter run; Kucera in the 3,000-meter steeplechase; LeDuc in the heptathlon; McDonough in the 800-meter run; Montville in the 100-meter dash; and Schaffer in the long jump and the 4x100meter dash on a team that also includes Thompson, Zoch and Piper.

BY COLLIN BOLEBRUCH Sports Editor

Awards

Plattsburgh State Athletics hosted the Student-Athlete Recognition Awards & Ceremony for the 2022-23 school year May 8. Multiple speakers took the stage, including Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreation

Mike Howard, Academic Coordinator Tom Thompson and Faculty Athletics

Representative Mila Su.

A variety of awards were handed out throughout the night.

The ceremony started with the induction of 40 new members to Chi Alpha Sigma, a national non-profit honors society for student-athletes. Current honorees, totalling 31, were also acknowledged.

Plattsburgh recognized the senior male and female team members with the highest cumulative GPAs with the Richard D. Semmler Award. It was given to Kara Oatman of women’s basketball, a biology major with a 3.94 GPA and Aiden Masten of men’s track and field, an adolescence education major with a 3.89 GPA. The Senior Achieve- ment Award is awarded to a senior male and female athlete, highlighting career achievements with the Cardinals. Honorees include Janyll Barber of women’s track and field, Sara Krauseneck of women’s hockey and Matt Araujo of men’s hockey.

Athletics then presented the Athlete of the Year award, given to a male and female athlete who had the best individual season during the prior academic year. It was given to Sierra Benjamin of women’s hockey and Jacob Modry of men’s hockey.

Plattsburgh then honored athletics members that served the community over the course of the 2022-23 academic year. The Cardinal Community Service/Leadership Award is given to an individual athlete that logged the most community service hours. Oatman took home the honor with 58 hours. The Cardinal Team Community Service Award recognizes the team with the most total hours and was given to men’s hockey.

McDonough had been struggling to hit times this season that she knows she’s capable of. Before SUNYACs, she failed to record a time under the 2:20.00 mark. It all came together for her last weekend.

“All of the doubt and all