Chico State Athletics

The numbers bear it out: Zoe DiNardo is off to the best start of her college career. The Chico State volleyball team’s talented outside hitter has been one of the Wildcats’ top scorers so far in 2022, posting double-digit kills in five of the first nine matches of the season. DiNardo’s consistency on the court was on full display in the ’Cats’ conference openers against Cal State Dominguez Hills and Cal State LA, making her the latest Wildcat of the Week.
 
DiNardo racked up a combined 24 kills against the Toros and the Golden Eagles, while adding eight digs and six blocks to the Wildcats’ attack.
 
Friday against Dominguez Hills, DiNardo led the ’Cats with 13 kills and contributed eight digs and three blocks. She followed up Saturday with a team-high 11-kill performance while stuffing three attacks at the net against Cal State LA.
 
DiNardo currently ranks 10th in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) in both kills (86) and kills per set (2.77), and is fourth on the Wildcats with 12 blocks in 2022. In less than two seasons with the ’Cats, the Southern California native has piled up 270 kills and 32 blocks. Counting her freshman season at Concordia (Portland), DiNardo now has 490 kills in her college career.
 
DiNardo and the Wildcats play their first home matches of the season this week, when they host Cal State Monterey Bay Friday and San Francisco State on Saturday. Both matches get underway at 5 p.m.