The Envoy

Full Feb. 23 Episode of “Hawk Athletics” hosted by David Horn

With everything on the line, four Hawks teams came up short in the playoffs despite some great performances over the week.

The Hawks missed an opportunity to extend the Commissioner’s Cup lead they created over the fall. After the women’s swim team picked up the first championship over the winter period, hopes around athletics were high that more championships would follow. However, all four teams competing this week failed to win.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

The fourth-seeded (fourth place before the playoffs) women’s basketball team faced fifth-seeded Lehman on Feb. 17 in the CUNYAC quarterfinals. On paper, the game should have been a tightly contested one, with the teams sitting so close in the standings.  

However, the Hawks seemed determined to prove their contender status. They secured a major 21-point victory and put the rest of the conference on notice with their seventh win in a row.

Co-captain Alexa Charles once again led Hunter with another impressive performance. Her 24 points on 11-19 shooting, 12 rebounds, eight steals, and two blocks put her in a class of her own during the game.

Forward Eliah Yode and guard Erin Cosio also put up big numbers. Yode grabbed 14 boards with 14 points to record her third double-double this season. Cosio’s 16 points were integral to pushing the Hawks over the edge.

The dominant victory set up a highly anticipated semi-final game against the Brooklyn College Bulldogs. Brooklyn finished this season with a conference record of 13-2 and won four of the last five CUNYAC championships, with their only loss coming to Hunter five years ago.

However, Hunter had newly acquired confidence going into the matchup. Not only were the Hawks the best team on current form in the conference, but one of Brooklyn’s two losses came against Hunter only three weeks prior. 

During the Feb. 16 “Hawk Athletics” show, Charles said the championship “is not something that’s out of reach for us [anymore]” after the great Hunter display in their last match.

The game started in a rowdy Brooklyn College gym. Almost every fan cheered for Brooklyn, creating an intimidating atmosphere for the visiting Hawks. The crowd heckled and yelled at each Hunter player every possession, with several Hawks gesturing back with shushing motions after baskets. However, through the jibes and the boos, Hunter went into halftime with a four-point lead. 

The second half saw Brooklyn change their game plan, and they began to work more on the inside. At times every Brooklyn College player was taller than each Hunter player on the floor, and the results showed. The Brooklyn team outrebounded Hunter 24-12 on the offensive end and scored seven more second-chance points than the Hawks.

Despite Brooklyn’s clear size advantage, the Hawks kept close. Going into the fourth quarter, the score was 45-42 in Hunter’s favor. Brooklyn cut the lead down to one after a mid-air 360 degree and-one layup from guard Alina Estrella with around five minutes remaining. The circus shot re-energized the Brooklyn crowd, and from then on they looked in control.

Charles hit a clutch three in the final minute to bring the game back to within two, but it was too little too late, and the Hawks lost the hard-fought match 65-59. 

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Men’s basketball was also seeded fourth going into the playoffs. Their first matchup against the fifth-seed Brooklyn College was always going to be tight, as in their two scheduled regular season games, each team won once.

The pressure was intense for the Brooklyn College players, who shot 39.7% from the field, 18.2% from three and 50% from the free-throw line.

Hunter shot a comparatively greater 43.6% from the field and 31.6% from three. However, they also shot 50% from the free-throw line. 

Guard Kareem McDonald and guard Jack Meyers led the Hawks through the rough game, scoring 21 and 18 points. McDonald also recorded eight assists and seven rebounds.

However, despite the perceived statistical dominance from Hunter, the game was close through all four quarters. The rugged defense from both teams created chaos on each end of the floor. The teams combed for 30 turnovers, and the lead changed seven times.

It was only fitting for such a closely contested game to end dramatically. In the final twenty seconds, with a lead of 60-58, all Hunter needed to wait out the shot clock. With a last-ditch effort, two Brooklyn defenders immediately converged on Hunter guard Casey Meyers, who lost the ball. 

Both Hawks and Bulldogs dove for the ball, but Brooklyn got there first, and with the rest of the Hawks upcourt, Brooklyn had a wide-open layup to tie the game.

Freshman guard Jaden Casanova gained a free layup at the hoop. Teams usually practice their layups before every game, because the layup should be the easiest shot in basketball.

He jumped from below the rim, and as the ball left his right hand all the Hawks could do was wait with bated breath and inevitably see the scores tied.

However, in a shocking twist, Casanova’s layup hit the back of the rim and bounced away from the basket. In the ensuing scramble, Hunter secured possession and won the game.

A playoff edition of “The Battle of Lexington” was next, which saw Hunter take on reigning CUNYAC champions and Lexington Avenue neighbors Baruch College.

The traveling Hunter squad looked rejuvenated after their fight with Brooklyn. Although the last meeting between Hunter and Baruch saw Baruch up 22 points at the half just two and a half weeks prior, this meeting saw the Hawks play valiantly as the halftime score was only 39-33 to Baruch.

McDonald continued his momentum from the Brooklyn game over into the first half. He was the only scorer in double-digits in the first half on either team and more impressively, the guard had zero turnovers at the break.

As a team, Hunter also shot 41.7% from three before halftime, which capped off a tremendous effort from the Hawks to keep them in contention.

However, the Baruch players came out fierce in the second half, and the Hawks could not keep up with the increase in pressure. Hunter had over two times as many turnovers in the second half as the first, and Baruch took advantage. The game quickly looked out of reach for the Hawks and ended 83-67 in Baruch’s favor.

MEN’s & WOMEN’s TRACK AND FIELD

The men and women runners won the fall cross country championships and looked to retain that title in indoor track and field. However, Medgar Evers dominated the standings during the indoor season, so the Hawks faced an uphill battle in the Feb. 18 conference.

Both Hunter squads started well. The women’s distance medley team of Samantha Suriel, Ashley Taylor, Irving Jiang, and Wendy Montiel, as well as the men’s distance medley team of Alexander Niyazov, Conor Sullivan, Brian Guillermo, and Mateo Penafiel, won gold in the first event.

The mile race directly followed, and Hunter’s men took home big points as Penafiel and Guillermo finished first and second while being within 0.5 seconds of one another. Touka Medjoubi finished third in the women’s mile and first on the Hunter team.

After the mile, Medgar Evers and the other CUNY schools began to catch up after Hunter’s quick start. The Hawks finished outside the top three in every sprinting event, with Medgar Evers consistently having finishers in the top two.

The Hawks tried to claw their way back as Lily McAndrews and Guillermo both finished second during the 800 meters. Then Medjoubi and Montiel finished first and second in the 3000 meters, and Penafiel, Niyazov, and Guillermo finished in the top three for the men, setting up an exciting finish for both teams.

However, the disappointing results in the 4×400 meter relay left Hunter on the verge of defeat. Karina Tan finished second in the women’s weight throw, and Jonathan Cauchi finished first in the men’s shot put, but the results of the other throws for both squads were also underwhelming.

Daria Niebrzydowski shone, winning the women’s high jump and placing second in the women’s triple jump. However, the men could not repeat that success in their jumps, which ended an ultimately disappointing championship.

The men finished in second place with 108 points to Medgar Evers 137.5, handing the Medgar Ever’s men’s team their first CUNYAC victory in school history. However, the women were still in contention.

Big scores in the triple jump, including personal records for both Rubilyn Navarro and Becky Li, helped make the meet a lot closer for the women. Unfortunately, they lost by 11 points, and Medgar Evers women secured their first victory in 20 years.

MEN’S VOLLEYBALL

Men’s volleyball played in the New Paltz Trimatch tournament, which saw them face SUNY Poly and SUNY New Paltz. Hunter beat Poly without much resistance. Although Poly won the second set, Hunter cruised through sets one, three, and four to win a decisive three-to-one victory.

New Paltz came into the second-match favorites after beating Hunter three-to-one already this season. Their 11-7 record ranked them 18th nationally compared to Hunter’s 2-5 record. The first two sets were hotly contested, with each team taking one apiece and getting to at least twenty points in both. Hunter secured a huge 25-14 win in the third set to take control of the game, but New Paltz fought back and won back-to-back sets to beat the Hawks in a five-set thriller.

Outside hitter and sophomore Muhammad Al-Amine Mbaye stood out in both matches. He led the Hawks in kills during both, with 15 and 18, and received the Feb. 19 CUNY men’s volleyball Player of the Week award for his efforts.

GUEST OF THE WEEK: Muhammad Al-Amine Mbaye

Mbaye has been a star player for the Hawks this season after transferring to Hunter from Long Island University (LIU) last fall. During his time at LIU, he appeared in three sets and has applied his division one experience to his time at Hunter. His 94 kills and 13.4 kills per match are the highest marks in CUNYAC so far, and he is looking to help his team build momentum as CUNYAC play begins.

“I think we’re finding it,” Mbaye said when asked about the team’s record turning around. “We had a pretty good showing against New Paltz the other day. We went to five with them, and they manhandled us a couple weeks earlier.”

The Hawks have struggled with their service all season, and Mbaye thinks they just need to get their balance right. 

“We’ve been focusing on serving a lot because we are a pretty poor serving team numbers-based,” Mbaye said.

Mbaye suggests that Hunter should put “decent balls in the court [that] gives us a chance to block, versus putting a super aggressive ball.”

A rare low point for Mbaye individually is having the most errors on the Hawks roster this season. However, he does not necessarily see the statistic as a negative.

“I need to be able to maximize my efficiency throughout [the game],” Mbaye said. “Part of what it takes to get a lot of kills in tough situations is an aggressive mindset. With an aggressive mindset, you will error a bit more often, so I think it’s only natural with the most swings I’d have the most errors.”

In his free time, Mbaye continues to partake in his passion for volleyball through youth coaching. As a Harlem native, he currently coaches in the area, extending his impact from the National Collegiate Athletics Association to the next generation of volleyball players in his neighborhood.

“Some of these athletes tell me otherwise [they] would not be playing sports, and that’s really rewarding,” he said.

That community will be sure to be behind Mbaye, as he looks to lead this Hawks roster to a championship after last year’s shock defeat to Baruch.

In the annual pre-season poll, Hunter and Baruch were tied for first place on votes, so the season is gearing up to be an exciting one that Mbaye will play a major role in.

LOOKING AHEAD: Next week’s coverage will feature the men’s volleyball CUNYAC season opener against CCNY and head athletic trainer Amy O’Connor will speak with Horn about her role at Hunter College.

“Hawk Athletics” is a sports show hosted by David Horn airing every Friday at 12 p.m on the Where Hunter College Speaks (WHCS) radio station. The Envoy’s Conor Sullivan breaks down Horn’s weekly show and recaps the latest on all things Hunter athletics.