DiCioccio, Women’s Volleyball Top Yeshiva in Four to Split Season Finale

NEW YORK — Junior Nina DiCioccio (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) recorded a near triple-double with eight kills, 10 assists, and 21 digs as the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's volleyball team defeated Yeshiva University on Sunday afternoon. The Bears split their tri-match season finale, falling in straight sets to Farmingdale State College in the first match.

The Basics

• Final Score (Match 1): Farmingdale State 3, St. Joseph's 0
• Set Scores (Match 1): 25-20, 26-24, 25-14
• Final Score (Match 2): St. Joseph's 3, Yeshiva 1
• Set Scores (Match 2): 25-16, 8-25, 25-18, 25-13
• Records: Farmingdale State (20-7, 10-0), St. Joseph's (8-13, 4-6), Yeshiva (1-15, 1-9)
• Location: New York — ARC Arena

How It Happened vs. Farmingdale State

• The Bears started strong in the first set, as they held a 10-6 lead after a Rams' ball handling error. But then a 6-0 Farmingdale State run, with two aces from Nicole Brand, turned the tides. St. Joseph's wouldn't lead for the remainder of the frame and FSC took it 25-20.
• Laurenanne Strezenec rifled an ace to give the Rams' their own 10-6 advantage in the second set. They continued to control things, leading 18-12 after a kill from Maia Cadle-Hinton. However, four different Bears would record a point as they went on a 7-1 spurt to knot the score at 20. SJC fought off an opposing match point, but Farmingdale would prevail 26-24 to go up 2-0.
• The Rams rode this momentum to a 10-2 score to open up the third. A Kelsey Voiklis kill would swell the lead to 20-9, and they wouldn't look back from there. Despite three Farmingdale errors leading to a late 5-1 Bears' run, FSC would hold on for a 25-14 victory to remain perfect in league play.

How It Happened vs. Yeshiva

• After an early gridlock, the Bears ran off to a 9-1 run including three kills from Valentina Urgo (Astoria, N.Y./St. John's Prep) to give them a 17-9 lead. This would be enough as the visitors rolled to a 25-16 victory.
• Yeshiva reversed their play right away in the second, cruising to a 12-0 run beginning the set. Yael Ghelman racked up five aces in the stanza for the home team as they bounced back 25-8 to even the match at two.
• Even though the Macs opened the third 5-0, a DiCioccio kill put the Bears up 19-16 late as they battled to gain the edge. Two Briana Marrazzo (East Elmhurst, N.Y./St. John's Prep) kills amidst a 3-0 SJC run to close the frame 25-18, putting them up 2-1.
• Despite being down 10-1 to start set four, Yeshiva reeled off a 6-1 run to close the gap, 11-7. The Bears dashed the comeback immediately, breaking out on their own 10-1 spurt to put it away. They would go on to win 25-13 and pick up their fourth league win in the final match of the year.

For the Bears

• DiCioccio was two kills away from a triple-double versus Yeshiva with eight, as well as 10 assists and 21 digs.
• In the second match, Marrazzo totaled seven kills, 19 digs, and two blocks.
• Tiffany Garcia-Lawson (Floral Park, N.Y./St. John's Prep) notched a team-high 12 points against the Macs on eight kills and four aces, as well as 11 digs.
• Paige Csikortos (Rocky Point, N.Y./Rocky Point) put up a double-double in both contests, with 16 assists and 14 digs in the first, and 16 assists and 13 digs in number two.

The Bear Facts

• Women's volleyball concluded 2017 with an 8-13 record (4-6 league), as opposed to last season's 12-12 (3-8) finish.
• The last set surrendered to Yeshiva was in 2011 (Oct. 25) in a 3-1 Bears win, in every year since SJC has been victorious via sweep.