CHICO – Following Friday’s thrilling five-set win over UC San Diego, the Chico State volleyball team was hoping the victory would have a carryover effect in its Saturday match against Cal State East Bay at Acker Gym. And there was…for awhile. The Wildcats came out with a convincing opening set win against the visiting Pioneers, but Cal State East Bay quickly regrouped and took control of the match, grinding out three hard-fought victories to down the ’Cats in four sets, 25-16, 22-25, 18-25 and 22-25.
Saturday’s loss was Chico State’s third in its last four matches and dropped the Wildcats to 8-5 on the year and 3-4 in California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) play. Cal State East Bay snapped a three-match losing streak with the victory, improving its season record to 9-3 and 4-3 in conference play.
Jessica Leek and Alex Shurtz were the lone Wildcat hitters with double-digit kills Saturday, as Chico State posted a mild .200 hitting percentage. Leek collected a team-high 11 kills while Shurtz added 10 non-returnables; Jacqueline Johnson and Crystal Trifeletti contributed nine kills apiece for the ’Cats. Setter Sable Villaescusa piled up 42 assists, while Jessica Simms and Molly Ratto chipped in with 10 digs each. Ratto also registered a trio of service aces. Katie Allen and and Sukhjit Athwal had 13 kills apiece to pace the victorious Pioneers.
Chico State looked sharp in the match’s opening set, breaking a nine-all tie with a 13-2 run to go up 22-11 – Shurtz, Leek and Trifeletti provided the spark, combining for seven kills, while Johnson and Ratto each recorded a service ace. Cal State East Bay made a small run late, but a Makenzie Fahnestock kill and two Pioneers errors gave the Wildcats the 25-16 win.
That would turn out to be Chico State’s last hurrah on the night. Cal State East Bay jumped out in front early in the second set, and though the lead would never exceed four points, every time the Wildcats tried to put together a run, the Pioneers found a way keep the ’Cats’ string of scores to a minimum. A pair of late kills by Leek and a Simms service ace got Chico State to within a point at 23-22, but Cal State East Bay called a timeout to stop the Wildcats’ momentum, then immediately posted the two points it needed to grind out the 25-22 win and even the match.
The Pioneers spread the offense around in winning the third set 25-18, but it was their front line of Brianna Bryant, Kitona Offord and Ariel Ajagu that did most of the damage, chalking up seven points off blocked shots. Chico State posted a measly .038 hitting percentage in the set, and suddenly the Wildcats were looking up at another 2-sets-to-1 deficit.
Chico State battled in the match’s fourth and final set, but Cal State East Bay refused to let the Wildcats reel off any significant scoring runs. The Pioneers built a 14-10 lead, and the ’Cats were once again forced to play catch-up…but they never could. Chico State still had a chance to force a fifth set, but with the score 23-22, back-to-back kills by Offord and K.C. Walsh gave Cal State East Bay the 25-22 victory and the match.
BOX SCORE
Chico State will play on the road next weekend, as they travel to southern California to take on CCAA leader and No. 5 ranked Cal State San Bernardino Friday and Cal Poly Pomona on Saturday. Both matches are scheduled for 7 p.m.
