Scholastic Roundup: The Bears of St. Joe’s are expanding

December 1, 2023 Andy Furman

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Joe Giacchi is the new assistant director of athletics for recreation and facilities at Brooklyn’s St. Joseph’s University.

The Caldwell (N.J.) graduate was appointed the Bears women’s basketball coach in April, and his new responsibilities include overseeing the operational aspects of the Hill Center and the St. Angela turf facility.

During his tenure at Caldwell, Giacchi was also on the women’s basketball coaching staff as an assistant. His 2017-18 Cougar squad earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament, thanks to a 24-7 record overall and a 16-3 mark in league play.

Five members of the St. Joseph’s University, Brooklyn fall athletic teams were named to the Skyline Conference All-Sportsmanship teams.

Lauren Van Der Kamp, a junior from Sacramento, Calif. averaged a finish time of 34:18 across each of the Bears’ five originally scheduled meets. Her best time this season came at the St. Joseph’s Invitational in mid-October, crossing the finish at 29:08.

Bishop Loughlin grad Joshua Gordon completed each 8K meet in under an hour, finishing the St. Joseph’s Invitational in a season-best time of 48:32. The senior was also men’s basketball’s All Sportsmanship recipient last season.

Casey Hobbs started each of the 10 soccer matches she played this season. She scored her lone goal of the season in a defeat of Yeshiva. In men’s soccer, Christian Chimborazo — the defender-turned-goalkeeper – made 16 saves against Rutgers-Newark — his first career match as a goalkeeper. He finished the season with 56 saves and a pair of clean sheets.

Brooklyn’s Danielle Bourne. a Christ the King High School grad. was named to the women’s volleyball squad. She compiled a season total of 10 digs and six service aces. She also participated in each of the Bears’ cross-country meets.

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Bishop Loughlin’s boys’ soccer team defeated St. Edmund’s Prep 1-0 – in overtime – to win the City Championship last month.

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Brooklyn College freshman Michael Kravets was named the City University of New York Athletic Conference Men’s Swimming and Diving Rookie of the Week. He helped the Bulldogs to an 85-57 win at York in conference action last week. He took first in the 200 IM with a time of 2:37.39 and won the 100 freestyle with a time of 56.82.

Reaching 1,000 points for her Brooklyn College career, senior guard Ericka James scored a team-high 15 points to lead the Brooklyn College women’s basketball team to a 60-47 non-conference win against Kingsborough-foe St. Joseph’s of Brooklyn, last week. James, a James Madison High grad, scored her 1,000th point on a free-throw in the fourth quarter. She knocked down a pair of threes and grabbed five boards in the win.

When the Brooklyn women pulled-out a gritty 45-40 non-conference victory in their season opener over Stockton University — it was Head Coach Meghan Campbell’s first win at the helm of the program.

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The LIU gymnastics team arrived at Island Harvest in Melville, N.Y. rolling up in a van packed with food to kick off the Thanksgiving holiday and lend a helping hand to the community.

The Sharks collected and delivered more than 100 non-perishable food items directly to the Island Harvest warehouse.

Under the guidance of Head Coach Randy Lane, the gymnastics team has made community involvement a cornerstone of its values. LIU competes in its first home meet of the season, January 21st inside the Pratt Recreation Center.

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LIU’s football team closed the 2023 season with three wins in its final four games and a second-place finish in the Northeast Conference.

Defensive end Eric O’Neill was selected the NEC Defensive Player of the Year. He was joined on the All-NEC first team by tight-end Owen Glascoe, defensive back Jai Roe and punter Will Lynch.

Davon Wells earned a pair of spots on the second-team — as a receiver and return specialist. He was joined as second-team All-NEC selections by offensive lineman Jake Timm and linebacker Daylen Fuller.

LIU alum Tosin Oyekanmi has signed a professional football contract with the Northern Arizona Wranglers of the Indoor Football League this week. Oyekanmi played for the Sharks from 2019-22 – in four seasons he produced 81 receptions for 1,059 yards and five touchdowns in 33 games.

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Eric Acker, a 6-2 freshman from Brooklyn’s Eagle Academy for Young Men II, scored a season-high 22 points to help the LIU Sharks to their first victory of the season — 83-68 over Texas A&M Corpus-Christi, last week at a Thanksgiving weekend tournament at Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, Ky.

Coach Rod Strickland’s Sharks dropped a 72-64 decision Saturday to host Northern Kentucky, as Tai Strickland — Rod’s son — led the way for the Sharks with 18 points.

Acker was named NEC Co-Rookie of the week and a prime performer. Tai Strickland joined Acker as an NEC prime performer this week.

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LIU’s women’s basketball team won their first game of the season with a 60-53 victory over Hampton last week. Mariah Elohim scored a team-high 19 points with six rebounds and an assist. Teammate Ashley Austin scored 16 on 7-10 shooting.

The Northeast Conference champion LIU women’s volleyball team was scheduled to meet number one seed Nebraska in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament in Lincoln, Nebraska, on Friday.

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Medgar-Evers sophomore forward Sheily Quezada was presented with a commemorative NCAA Statistical Champion plaque, which saluted the 6-foot EBC High School for Public Service, Bushwick graduate for leading the nation in blocks-per-contest (4.3) during the 2022-2023 season.

The women’s basketball team dropped its home opener falling to the Rams of Farmingdale State College, 67-31 last week. Less than three-minutes into the non-conference ballgame, Quezada made more history for the Cougars, swatting a shot to make her the all-time blocks leader in school history with 112, surpassing the previous record holder, Shauntelle Nelson.

For the evening, Quezada finished with six points, while tying for the game-high of 12 rebounds and blocking three shots.

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When the Medgar Evers men’s basketball team topped the Bears of St. Joseph’s University, Brooklyn, 63-62, it marked the first time in seven years the Cougars won their season-opener. The last time they won a season opener – 94-61, November 15, 2016, when they topped the Golden Eagles of St. Joseph’s University-Long Island.

Last week, the men topped the Patriots of the University of Valley Forge, 87-83. Senior Dante Simmons had team highs of 18 points and seven rebounds. Joshua Jean Perre finished with 16 points, three rebounds, and three assists and newcomer Nicholas Guillen had 13.

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Despite a pair of double-doubles from Kylie Grant and Anabela Jakelic, the Pratt Institute women’s basketball team fell 69-38 to Medgar Evers in the semifinals of the 2023 Dr. Betty Shabazz Tournament last Saturday.

Jakelic turned in her second collegiate double-double with 13 points and a game and a career-high 18 rebounds. Grant scored a team-leading 17 points with 13 rebounds and four assists. Almundena Valenzuela added eight points.

Scoring a Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference-leading 20 goals, junior forward Siena Sujitno has been named to the C2C Women’s Soccer All-Conference Second Team. The Toronto, Canada native opened the season scoring in four straight games — the first of two separate four-game goal-scoring streaks — and she found the back of the net in nine of 13 games.

Andy Furman is a Fox Sports Radio national talk show host. Previously, he was a scholastic sports columnist for the Brooklyn Eagle. He may be reached at: [email protected] Twitter: @AndyFurmanFSR