HAYWARD, Calif. – The Chico State volleyball team concluded a long weekend road trip Saturday in the Bay Area, and it’s one the Wildcats would just as soon forget. After dropping a four-set decision Friday in San Diego, the ’Cats were upended by the newest member of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), Cal State East Bay, losing in three sets by scores of 29-27, 25-21 and 25-22 at Pioneer Gym in Hayward.

Saturday’s loss dropped Chico State to 12-4 for the season and 3-3 in the CCAA. Cal State East Bay won its second straight match to improve to 4-11 on the year and 2-5 in conference play.

The match marked the first time in 13 years the two schools had met on the volleyball court, back when Cal State East Bay was known as Cal State Hayward. Saturday’s first set saw the Wildcats fall behind early and trail most of the way…but with the Pioneers holding a 22-18 lead, Chico State reeled off five straight points – powered by three Makenzie Snyder kills – to go up 23-22. Cal State East Bay tied the score at 24-all, but the Wildcats went back in front 27-26 and had the Pioneers staring at match point. The ’Cats failed to deliver the knockout punch, though, committing three straight attack errors and Cal State East Bay emerged with the 29-27 victory.

Chico State had a chance to even things up, taking command of the second set by building a 17-14 lead. But the Wildcats once again let the advantage slip away, as Cal State East Bay scored 11 of the next 15 points to post a come-from-behind 25-21 win.

The Wildcats jumped out to an 8-3 lead in the third set, but the Pioneers once again found the hot hand, going on a 20-10 run to make the score 23-18. Now with its back to the wall, Chico State utilized kills by Gillian Heydorff, Jacqueline Johnson and Jessica Leek to string together four unanswered points and narrow the deficit to one. The Wildcats’ rally fell short, however, as an attack error and a set-ending kill by Cal State East Bay’s Katie Gellerman gave the Pioneers the 25-23 victory and the match.

Snyder led the Wildcats with 16 kills in the losing effort; she also racked up 10 digs and a pair of service aces. Heydorff had 15 kills (giving her 987 for her Chico State career, moving her into fifth place on the school’s all-time kills list), 12 digs and two service aces; Sable Villaescusa handed out 36 assists and contributed 13 digs; and Gigi Terlouw had 11 digs, but it wasn’t enough to keep the ’Cats from dropping their third match in the last four contests.

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