Women's Soccer Cruises Past Berkeley, Sets Up HVIAC Semifinal vs. King's

BROOKLYN, N.Y.—Freshman Cansu Usta (Brooklyn, N.Y./Fort Hamilton) added to her NCAA-leading goal tally as the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's soccer team cruised past Berkeley College, 10-1, in their Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular season finale on Thursday evening at Aviator Sports and Events Center.

The Lady Bears (11-3, 2-2 HVIAC) locked up the No. 3 seed with the win and will face No. 2 King's (N.Y.) in the HVIAC Tournament semifinals on Sunday at 4 p.m. at Randalls Island Field 10.

Usta found the back of the net five times, including the game-winner, and now has 36 goals, leading the NCAA in all divisions, both men and women. Christina Caruso (Queens, N.Y./St. John's Prep) scored twice, for her eighth of the season, and added an assist.

Freshman Destiny Marino (Queens, N.Y./Christ the King) scored her first career goal and assisted on two others while Shannon Rom (Breezy Point, N.Y./Bishop Kearney) and Jamilynn McGowan (Staten Island, N.Y./Petrides) each added a goal.

Pamela Chernyakhovsky (Brooklyn, N.Y./Leon M. Goldstein) assisted on two goals and Maria Randazzo (Brooklyn, N.Y./Fontbonne Hall) contributed an assist.

Rom opened the scoring in the eighth minute with her third of the season and Usta put the Lady Bears up 2-0 two minutes later.

Play slowed down and remained scoreless until Usta and completed her sixth hat trick of the season with strikes in the 26th and 38th minutes.

The Lady Bears went ahead 5-0 on a Caruso goal before Berkeley ended the shutout scoring just three minutes before the break on a Briana Ortega goal. But Usta sent the Lady Bears into the lockers up 6-1 with her fourth goal in the 44th minute.

St. Joseph's dominated possession and outshot the Knights (0-5, 0-4 HVIAC) 37-2 for the contest.

The Lady Bears will look to reverse a 5-3 decision to King's on Sunday and return to the HVIAC title game after capturing the title in 2012.