Men's Volleyball's Winningest Season Ends in Five-Set Marathon in HVIAC Semifinals

NEW YORK—After reaching the 10-win mark for the first time in program history, the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's volleyball team's quest for their first Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title would fall short, dropping a 3-2 decision to Clinton Hill rivals Pratt Institute on Wednesday night at the Max Stern Athletic Center.

Senior Raul Urshela (Orlando, Fla./Colonial) led the attack with 16 kills and four blocks, also bringing up eight digs, wrapping up his illustrious career as the all-time Bears leader in kills (841), kills per set (3.03), attack percentage (.164) attack attempts (2378), solo blocks (98), block assists (90), total blocks (187), blocks per set (0.67), points (1071.0), points per set (3.9), sets played (278) and matches played (79). In ceremonies after the tournament, Urshela was named to the All-HVIAC Team, his third career selection.

Senior Clyde Delacruz (Brooklyn, N.Y./Frederick Douglas Acad. II) contributed nine kills and three blocks. Junior Norrin Martinez (Maspeth, N.Y./Holy Cross) dished out 31 assists and brought up a team-high 13 digs for his team-leading eighth double-double of the season.

Juniors Thomas Kennedy (Breezy Point, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) and Taso Kostikas (Brooklyn, N.Y./Midwood) added five kills each, Kostikas helping the defense with 12 digs.

The Cannoneers (8-6, 4-2 HVIAC) rode the back of David Cutler, who was named 2015 Player of the Year after the tournament and pounded 29 kills along with 15 digs and three aces, all match highs. Brandon Ryan dished out 43 assists on the team's 49 kills.

Unlike the first regular season meeting that went to five sets and featured 30 ties and 17 lead changes in a Bears victory, the semifinal rubber match featured just 13 ties and nine lead changes with the squads controlling the frame from the outset and limiting each other to under 20 points in a see-saw match.

The higher-seeded Pratt took sets one (25-18) and three (25-17) with St. Joseph's storming back in sets two (25-16) and four (25-18) to level the match and force a deciding set.

The Bears opened the fifth set tentatively and three early miscues would help the Cannoneers assemble a 5-0 run to build a 5-1 lead they wouldn't relinquish. St. Joseph's would close to 7-4 on a kill from Jessup Sanna (Brooklyn, N.Y./Bishop Loughlin) but the Bears could only muster three kills in the frame.

The Cannoneers landed seven kills at a .235 clip to maintain their separation in the deciding set and punched their ticket to the finals with a 15-7 win, but would eventually fall in straight sets to four-time champion and host Yeshiva University.

In the two sets St. Joseph's won, the Bears hit an efficient .278 totaling double-digit kills in each frame, but in the three set losses, hit a combined -0.178 with just 14 kills.

Despite the loss, the Bears (10-10, 3-3 HVIAC) lock up their first .500 season in program history and will look to build upon that success joining the Skyline Conference next season.