Bears Volleyball Edged Out by Sarah Lawrence in HVMAC Semis

NEW YORK, N.Y. – The St. Joseph's (Brooklyn) mens volleyball team's season and four-game winning streak came to an end on Thursday night, when they lost in the semifinals of the Hudson Valley Men's Athletic Conference (HVMAC) tournament to the Sarah Lawrence College Gryphons (25-22, 19-25, 30-28, 25,23).

The four-set loss caps a season of progress and growth for the Bears (7-14) who continue to develop as a program and finished with the most wins in program history. The Gryphons (7-16) were ultimately trumped in the final against tournament host Yeshiva University, who finished HVMAC play undefeated en route to their second league championship.

Raul Urshela (Orlando, FL/Colonial) capped an impressive sophomore campaign amassing a Bears-record 24 kills, nine digs and two assists. Senior hitter Martin Torres (Ozone Park,NY/St. Francis Prep) concluded an outstanding career by posting his third double-double of the season with 23 kills and 11 digs. Both combined for 47 of the Bears' 55 kills, also a new team record.

Junior setter Iqbal Husain (West Palm Beach, FL/Palm Beach Gardens) also etched his name in the record book handing out a career-high 43 assists while adding nine digs in his season finale. Also tallying double digit digs for the Bears were freshman Taso Kostikas (Brooklyn, NY/Midwood) and junior Javier Bosque (Brooklyn, NY/LaSalle Academy) with 12 and 11, respectively.

It was evident that both teams understood the magnitude of the evening right from the first serve. The Gryphons led by as many as seven points in the first set before the Bears came storming back to cut the Sarah Lawrence lead to 23-22. Gryphon's setter Brent Terry was able to serve out the final two points to preserve the 25-22 victory.

The second set was neck-and-neck until the Bears wrapped it up by scoring eight of the last nine points equating to a 25-19 victory.

The turning point of the match occurred in the third set. The Bears jumped out to an early 5-1 lead, a lead they would maintain throughout the set until the Gryphons fought off two set points at 24-22. Sarah Lawrence would fight off five set points in total until the 28-28 mark, when a massive block from Gryphon outside hitter Harrison Holmes and a decisive service ace from Ishaan Pujari awarded the Gryphons a 2-1 advantage.

In the fourth-and-final set of the match the Bears led by as many as six points and carried into the late stages of the set before Sarah Lawrence fought back to level the frame at 21-all.  With St. Joseph's leading 23-22, the Gryphons proceeded to score the final three points of the match en route to a 25-23 win.

In ceremonies concluding the tournament, Husain and Kostikas were announced to the 2013 All-Conference Team, both receiving the honor for the first time in their careers. Head coach Kristin Wulff was also honored as 2013 Coach of the Year in her second year at the helm of the Bears.