Men's Volleyball Claims Four-Set Triumph Over Neighbors Pratt

BROOKLYN, N.Y. --- The St. Joseph's University, N.Y. (Brooklyn) men's volleyball team edged Pratt Institute 3-1 (25-21, 19-25, 25-17, 27-25) on Tuesday night from the ARC. The trio of Alex Helfant (Quito, Ecuador/Alliance Academy International), Alejandro Oliveros (Brooklyn, N.Y./Grover Cleveland), and Jahin Sadique (New York, N.Y./High School for Dual Language and Asian Studies) all recorded double-doubles to secure the Bears' first win of the 2023 season.

How it Happened

Frank Tello (Quito, Ecuador/Alliance Academy International) slammed a pair of kills as part of a 4-0 run to begin the first set. The Cannoneers (1-7) clawed back to within one, 6-5, before knotting the set at 11 all. However, a combined nine kills from Helfant, Oliveros, and Tello paced the Bears (1-4), winning the set 25-21.

The beginning of the second stanza saw little separation with neither side leading by more than two points. Pratt took their largest lead of the set, 20-15, before the Bears closed the gap to one. However, the hosts leveled the match at one thanks to a 5-0 run to close the set.

Pratt ran out to an early 11-4 lead to begin the third, their largest of the contest. With the Bears trailing 16-11, a combination of kills from Helfant and Tello and errors by the Cannoneers, saw the Bears the next 10 points unanswered to swing the lead in their favor, 21-16. The Helfant-Tello pair logged three kills in the closing stages of the set to hold a 2-1 advantage.

The fourth set was a seesaw affair that featured 11 ties and eight lead changes. Follwing a timeout down 11-8, the navy and gray logged eight of the next 10 points - with Helfant, Tello, and Lordnel Saint-Jean (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) all notching kills in the stretch - to hold a 16-13 edge. Pratt would tie the set at 20-all before reclaiming the lead on the next point, 21-20. Helfant saved the Bears from a pair of Cannoneer set points before his kill at match point, 26-25, clinched the 3-1 set win.

For the Bears

• Helfant brought up 10 digs and slammed 10 kills, both season highs. He also came up with a pair of blocks and as many service aces.
• Oliveros' 11 digs matches a career-best. The graduate student also finished with 13 assists and five kills.
• Sadique recorded 11 assists and 10 digs to go with his team-leading three aces and two kills.
• Tello posted eight kills, three blocks, and four digs.
• Saint-Jean and Frank Arevalo (Astoria, N.Y./Gramercy Arts) each had four kills and combined for nine digs. The former had two assists while the latter served up a pair of aces.

Up Next

The Bears return home in over a week, hosting Medgar Evers College on Thursday, March 2 at 7 p.m. Live stats and video will be available on sjbkathletics.com/live.