The Baruch College Bearcats were back in action this week, with the men’s and women’s basketball and men’s volleyball teams highlighting this week’s games and the swimming and diving teams taking home CUNY Athletic Conference awards. Basketball

The men’s basketball team continued its hot streak following a massive win in the Battle of Lexington on Feb. 2, defeating both the Medgar Evers College Cougars and the Lehman College Lightning this week.

In its first game following the Battle of Lexington, the Bearcats rolled an even larger victory than its huge 44-point win against the Hunter College Hawks, routing the Cougars 123-69.

The contest was over from the jump, as the Bearcats emerged with a 57-28 lead in the first half. Six players scored in double figures, with Devin Nicholson leading the way with 24 points.

The Feb. 10 win against the Lightning proved to be a nail-biter, with the Bearcats edging out a five-point victory 68-63.

It was a close match. Baruch’s biggest lead was 13, but the lead changed six times en route to one of the most competitive games the Bearcats have had this season.

Emil Purisic posted a double-double in the win, scoring 12 points and 10 rebounds. Nicholson led the way in scoring with 16 points.

The Baruch women’s team handed both the Cougars and the Lightning almost an identical fate.

The Bearcats played the Cougars twice this week, on Feb. 6 and Feb. 8. The former was a

makeup game for Jan. 14’s postponed contest. In their two latest games, the Bearcats blew out the Cougars.

The Feb. 6 game saw the Bearcats jump out to a massive lead in the first quarter, holding the Cougars to just five points in the period while scoring 29 points of their own. This lead would prove insurmountable, as the Bearcats won 68-20.

Mia Castillo nearly posted a triple-double with 24 points, an incredible 10 steals and six rebounds to lead the Bearcats to the crushing defeat and a solid rebound from the loss in the Battle of Lexington.

The Cougars suffered the same fate two days later, falling to the Bearcats 84-44. The first quarter was close, with the Bearcats posting just a 19-12 lead. But the Bearcats ran away with the game in the second quarter, outscoring the Cougars 30-6 in the period.

Elissa Leung led the way for the Bearcats, pouring in 30 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals in a very well-balanced game. Castillo poured in a double-double of her own, scoring 16 points and dishing out 12 assists.

The Bearcats then beat the Lightning by five points – an identical margin of victory to the men’s team.

The lead changed hands three times, and the score was tied on four occasions. But the Bearcats were able to pull away with the win in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Lightning 16-7 in that period.

Castillo once again posted spectacular numbers with 21 points, 13 rebounds and six assists to lead the Bearcats to the win.

Men’s volleyball

It was a rough week for the men’s volleyball team, as they suffered four losses consecutively.

The team kicked off its week against the New York University Violets on Feb. 7, getting swept 3-0.

The team lost its first set 25-16, its second 25-15 and its third 25-19, in what turned out to be an uncompetitive game.

The Bearcats headed over to Glenside, Pennsylvania, for the Arcadia Knights Classic hosted by the Arcadia University Knights from Feb. 11 to Feb. 12.

Baruch first played against the Knights, where they were swept once again 3-0. The first set wasn’t close, as the Bearcats lost 25-13. The squad put up a fight in the next two sets but ultimately fell to the Knights in both 29-27 and 26-24, respectively.

The team proceeded to fall against the New Jersey City University Gothic Knights 3-1 and the Eastern Mennonite University Royals 3-0.

The team will look to get back on track against CUNYAC opponents in the coming weeks.

Swimming and diving The Bearcats absolutely dominated the CUNYAC men’s awards, with Youssef Elkhouly winning Performer of the Year, Leonardo Valdivia winning Rookie of the Year, and Coach Charles Lampasso winning Coach of the Year.

Seven men were named All-Stars as well: Elkhouly, Valdivia, Gary Danilyan, Eli Meron, Jordan Lin, Michael Guzman and Eric Goldshteyn.

On the women’s side, Kira Chen won Rookie of the Year. Overall, five women were named AllStars: Chen, Kaetlyn Chavez, Joyce Wong, Scarlet Astudillo and Tercia Dobrzynski.