Playing at home was not much of an advantage against Hartwick, who came out on fire for the first six minutes of the game. Almost immediately, the Red Hawks gave up the first goal of the contest.

At the 6:01 mark, Becca Malinowski scored, which did not spell immediate disaster, but essentially turned out to be the game winner.

Though they played well, the Red Hawks were simply unable to score. The defense was strong and held up for the remainder of the game, but RPI was unable to capitalize on the opportunities they were given.

The Red Hawks out-shot Hartwick 12-3 but saw none of their attempts go in. Two of their best chances included one shot going off the crossbar, and another going off the post.

This game proved to be another good fight and solid effort from the Red Hawks, but ultimately not enough, as they took the loss by a final score of 1-0.

A rainy day on the turf field of Kingston Peeks Stadium spelled trouble for the Red Hawks as they had to deal with the tough conditions. Fortunately, so did their opponent, as a grudge match would take place in the unpleasant conditions.

For the first ten minutes of the games, the Red Hawks came out on top, pounding away on their opponent. Once again, however, they had trouble scoring, as they missed on one breakaway, and failed on a corner kick. Both teams would continue to battle, but headed into the half with the score remaining 1-0.

As the second half opened, SUNY New Paltz came out pumped up and tough. At the 67:53 mark, Jamie McBain scored an unassisted goal to give her team the lead. The ball had come through the box with little pressure, and McBain was able to score.

Andi Trinward countered for the Red Hawks, tying it up at the 73:32 mark. Judy Kastner got the assist.

With thirty seconds remaining in the game, the Red Hawks cleared the ball, but it was very short. This would be disastrous for RPI as Brianne Miller received the ball and blasted it into the back of the net from thirty feet out. The game ended by a score of 2-1 with the Red Hawks taking a heartbreaking loss.

“We are playing and competing, but we still have to learn how to close out games, hold onto the lead, and put out our opponents … we need to know how to use the clock to our advantage,” described Head Coach Eric Miller on his teams’ efforts.

The Red Hawks are left with a bad taste in their mouths from a tough week, but they are on the verge of becoming a solid team.

Their next task will be to improve their strategies for handling situations late in games so they are more prepared to handle pressure situations.

The women will look to turn it around again this weekend when they take on Hamilton and William Smith. Both games will be at home.