Late Rally Falls Short as Women’s Volleyball Falls in Hard-Fought Match to Baruch

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — In their return to The Hill Center after a five-set comeback victory at CCNY, the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's volleyball team tried to jump start another comeback against Baruch gaining two set points in the third set, but couldn't convert and suffered a straight-set loss to the Bearcats. Junior Nina DiCioccio (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) and freshman Tiffany Garcia-Lawson (Floral Park, N.Y./St. John's Prep) slammed a match-high-tying 10 kills in defeat.

The Basics

• Final Score: Baruch 3, St. Joseph's 0
• Set Scores: 25-22, 25-10, 26-24
• Records: Baruch (5-5), St. Joseph's (2-2)
• Location: Brooklyn, N.Y. — The Hill Center

How It Happened

• The match began as a back-and-forth affair, as both squads found themselves tied 7-7 early in the first.
• The Bearcats clawed out to an 18-12 lead, but couldn't hold it as three kills from DiCioccio gave the Bears a 21-20 edge. However, the back-and-forth would continue as Baruch stormed right back to take the set 25-22.
• In the second frame, Baruch began to assert themselves. The closest SJC came was within five, but four kills in the set from Katherine Chen powered Baruch to a momentum-building 25-10 set victory.
• In the third stanza, Baruch cruised out to an 18-11 advantage but SJC would go down fighting, and an 8-1 run capped off by a kill from freshman Kathleen O'Dea (Brooklyn, N.Y./Bishop Kearney) narrowed the gap to 19-18, Baruch.
• The momentum continued on the Bears side, as they gained two points at 24-22, but the Bearcats would fight both off and take the final four points to close out the Bears in straight sets.

For the Bears

• Garcia-Lawson recorded her first collegiate double-double in the loss, picking up 10 kills and 12 digs, as well as having a team-high 11 points.
• DiCioccio added 10 kills of her own, along with eight digs and four assists.
• Sophomore Paige Csikortos (Rocky Point, N.Y./Rocky Point) nabbed a double-double herself, her second of the season, with 12 digs and a match-high 22 assists.
• Freshman Dana Roussos (Astoria, N.Y./Monsignor McClancy) and sophomore Valentina Urgo (Astoria, N.Y./St. John's Prep) both logged double-digit digs on the defensive end with 14 and 11.

The Bear Facts

• This is just the second meeting between the two squads and the first since 2006, which SJC won in straight sets.
• St. Joseph's suffers their first loss against the CUNYAC this year, falling to 2-1, with wins over Medgar Evers and CCNY.

Next Up for the Bears

• A trip to sister campus SJC Long Island for their Skyline Conference opener on Thursday, Sep. 28. First serve is at 7 p.m. with live stats and video available at SJCBears.com.