NEW PALTZ, N.Y. – In its first game back after the New Year, the State University of New York at New Paltz women's basketball team (10-0, 4-0 SUNYAC) picked up right where it left off, defeating Mount Saint Mary College (5-6), 63-48, in a non-conference matchup at the Hawk Center on Friday. The win keeps the Hawks undefeated through their first 10 games, the longest stretch to open a season in program history.
 
Senior forward Alex McCullough (Delmar, N.Y./Bethlehem Central) scored a game-high 20 points, and added five rebounds and three steals on the evening. Senior guard Maliqua Fisher (North Babylon, N.Y./North Babylon) contributed 12 points, five boards and stole the ball four times. Freshman guard Shannan Walker (Vestal, N.Y./Vestal) picked up nine points and led the Hawks with four assists.
 
The Hawks came out flying in the first half, executing the full-court press to keep the Knights off the board. Hot shooting put the Hawks up 15-2 in the first five minutes, including seven straight points scored by McCullough, but the Knights bounced back to go on a 15-2 run of their own to knot things up at 17. Poor shooting and turnovers caused the Hawks to fall behind 28-25 at the intermission.
 
15-2 runs were a popular trend on Friday, as the Hawks pulled off another one to go up 40-30 at the 15:48 mark. After this point, the Hawk lead never fell below double digits, as the full-court press proved to be effective against the Mount Saint Mary offense.
 
Rachel Perrone pulled down a game-high 15 rebounds on the night for Mount Saint Mary, adding 10 points in her effort. Lauren Romao led the Knights with 11 points.
 
The Hawks shot 49.1 percent from the field on 27-of-55 shooting in the win, holding the edge over the Knights, who shot 31.6 percent (18-of-57). Though there was not much foul shooting in the game, the Hawks held a slight advantage, shooting 62.5 percent (5-of-8) from the charity stripe, compared to the Knights' 60 percent (6-10).
 
Friday's victory was the 12th straight for the Hawks at the Hawk Center, which dates back exactly one year. Head coach Jamie Seward mentioned after the game that it is always important to win the first game after the break, which his team has done six out of the seven years that he has been the Hawks' head coach.
 
New Paltz returns to action on Tuesday, Jan. 8, as they take on SUNY Cortland in a State University of New York Athletic Conference contest. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. from the Hawk Center.