HVWAC Soccer & Volleyball Championship Previews

BROOKLYN, N.Y. – Both St Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's soccer and volleyball teams are in action on Sunday with a shot at claiming their respective Hudson Valley Women's Athletic Conference championships.

Here's a look at their road to the title.

Women's Soccer

HVWAC Championship Game
Sunday, November 11 at noon at the College of Staten Island
#1 St. Joseph's (5-4-2, 3-1 HVWAC) vs. #2 Berkeley (3-2, 2-2 HVWAC)
2012 HVWAC Soccer Tournament Central

St. Joseph's has a chance to capture the league title in their inaugural varsity season.

When the Lady Bears and Knights met in the regular season just over three weeks ago, Association of Division III Independents (AD3I) Rookie of the Year and First-Team All-Independent honoree Pamela Chernyakhovsky scored in the seventh minute to give the Lady Bears a 1-0 lead they would never relinquish.

Leading scorer and AD3I and United States Collegiate Athletic Association second team selection Cynthia Gambino, tacked on goals in the 36th and 60th minutes to build a commanding 3-0 lead.

St. Joseph's will have to shake off the rust from not playing for 16 days due to the effects of Hurricane Sandy that battered the east coast. The Lady Bears saw their last action coming in a 2-0 loss to York, advancing to the finals by way of Medgar Evers forfeit.

Berkeley clinched a spot in the finals with a 1-0 victory over Yeshiva two weeks ago. The Knights and Maccabees remained scoreless at the intermission until Kerryann Haughton, the first-half goalkeeper, took to the field in the second half and fired six shots, and scored the game winner 10 minutes into the second stanza.

Women's Volleyball

HVWAC Championships
Sunday, November 11th at the Culinary Institute of America
Semifinal #1 at 3 p.m.: #1 St. Joseph's (14-6, 6-0) vs. #4 Culinary (8-5, 3-3) or #5 Pratt (3-5, 2-4)
Championship at 5 p.m.: Semifinal winners
2012 HVWAC Volleyball Tournament Central

The Lady Bears maintained a spotless record in HVWAC play securing their first regular season championship since 2008, also the last time they captured the conference title, completing a five-year stretch of dominance atop the conference.

In addition to battling the effects of Hurricane Sandy, the road to the title won't be easy. If the seeding holds true, the Lady Bears will meet Culinary on their home floor in the semifinals. The Steels are the defending tournament champions by virtue of a straight-set win over St. Joseph's in last year's title game.

When the Lady Bears and Steels met in Hyde Park during the regular season, St. Joseph's prevailed in the a five-set marathon after racing out to a two-set lead. Freshman Lauren GaNun, named AD3I Rookie of the Year and a First-Team All-Independent earlier this week, carried the Lady Bears with a career-high 20 kills and fellow first team honoree Kim Matthews brought up a career-high 36 digs, adding nine kills.

Waiting in the wings on the other half of the draw are the top seeds #2 Sarah Lawrence and #3 New Rochelle. The Lady Bears took convincing, straight-set road wins over both squads in the final week of the regular season to clinch the regular season title.

Fans unable to make the trip to Hyde Park can follow the live stats from www.SJCBears.com.