Men's Volleyball Earns First Victory Over Brooklyn College With Straight-Set Triumph

BROOKLYN, N.Y.—The St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's volleyball bounced back from a two-game skid and moved back to level .500  upending borough rivals Brooklyn College in straight sets, 3-0 (25-20, 25-15, 25-23), on Wednesday evening at The Hill Center.

The victory was the first for the Bears (2-2) in the all-time series of 10 meetings.

Senior Raul Urshela (Orlando, Fla./Colonial) led the way with 10 kills and six service aces, both team highs, also adding six digs. Junior Thomas Kennedy (Breezy Point, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) chipped in six kills, six digs and four aces.

Junior Taso Kostikas (Brooklyn, N.Y./Midwood) anchored the defense with nine digs and aided the attack with five kills. Junior Norrin Martinez (Maspeth, N.Y./Holy Cross) directed the offense with 17 assists.

Brooklyn (0-11) was paced by Rudy Zhao who put away a match-high 14 kills and fell one dig shy of a double-double.

In the opening set, a 7-0 run powered by Urshela's serve landing five of his six aces in the spurt gave the Bears a 12-8 lead they wouldn't relinquish. The Bears would extend to a 20-12 advantage, before the Bulldogs pulled back within two points late, 22-20, but couldn't steal the set from the Bears.

In the second stanza, the Bears broke open a tight set and won the final 11 points for a convincing 25-15 set win.

The Bears held on to a slim advantage for most of the third set but couldn't pull away from the Bulldogs. The visitors threatened to force an extra set knotting the frame at 23-23, but back-to-back miscues sealed their fate.

St. Joseph's has a week off before continuing their four-game home stand at The Hill Center. The Bears welcome former Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and future Skyline Conference rivals Sarah Lawrence College to The Hill Center on Wednesday, February 18 for a 7 p.m. first serve.