CHICO – After five consecutive road matches, the Wildcat volleyball team will play in Chico for the first time in three weeks, but not on their regular home court. Due to damage to the Acker Gym floor, the ’Cats will be setting up shop down the hall in Shurmer Gym, hosting Cal State Dominguez Hills on Friday and Cal State L.A. Saturday. Both matches get underway at 7 p.m.
The move to Shurmer carries a bit of historical significance. The weekend matches will mark the first time since Oct. 7, 2000 that a Chico State volleyball team has played a regular season match in the facility. Ironically, the Wildcats’ opponent in that last Shurmer Gym tilt was Cal State Dominguez Hills.
The Wildcats enter play 12-4 on the season and tied for third place in the CCAA with a 6-3 conference record. Chico State took two of its three matches last week – after dropping a three-set decision to Cal State Stanislaus Oct. 3, the ’Cats bounced back with weekend road wins over Cal State Monterey Bay and Cal State East Bay. The Wildcats are no doubt glad to be back in Chico, where they have yet to lose a home match this season.
Chico State continues to rank among the top CCAA teams in several statistical categories. The Wildcats are:
• Second in the conference in kills (924) and kills per set (14.44)
• Second in assists (769) and third in assists per set (12.40)
• Tied for fourth in service aces (98) and fourth in aces per set (1.58)
• Fifth in digs (1000) and fifth in digs per set (16.13)
Several Wildcats are also putting up some impressive individual numbers. Outside hitter Alex Shurtz is ninth in the nation in kills per set (4.39) and leads the CCAA in both kills (272) and kills per set. She also ranks second among conference players with 18 solo blocks.
Sable Villaescusa tops CCAA setters in both assists (643) and assists per set (10.54) while ranking 26th in the nation. Villaescusa enters this weekend’s action needing just five assists to become only the second Chico State player ever with 4,000 career assists.
Middle hitter Lindsay Quigley is 40th in the nation in hitting percentage (.353) and ranks No. 2 in the CCAA in that category. Jessica Simms, who last weekend moved past Lindsay Macias into second place on the Wildcats’ career digs list (1,173 and counting), is 10th in the conference in both digs (234) and digs per set (3.77).
Cal State Dominguez Hills, the Wildcats’ Friday night opponent, is 7-9 on the season but tied for fifth place in the CCAA with a 5-4 conference record. Dominguez Hills, which has finished last in the CCAA for five straight years, has already won six more matches than last season, but comes to Chico having dropped three of its last four decisions. The Toros split their two road matches last weekend, beating Humboldt State before falling in five sets to Cal Poly Pomona.
Dominguez Hills is led by junior middle hitter Whitney Lee, who leads the CCAA with 20 solo blocks and ranks 39th in the nation in blocks per set (1.12). Lee is also fifth in the conference with 22 service aces and has contributed 157 kills to the Toros’ attack.
Elizabeth Krieger is the Toros’ top offensive threat; the junior opposite hitter ranks ninth in the CCAA in kills (190). Freshman setter Dana Brown is fifth in the conference in assists per set (9.32).
The Wildcats won both matches with the Toros in 2011 and 14 straight since 2005. The ’Cats own a 28-7 lead in the all-time series.
Cal State L.A., which rolls into Chico following its Friday match in Turlock against Cal State Stanislaus, is 7-9 overall and 5-4 in the CCAA. The Golden Eagles snapped a three-match losing streak and moved into a tie for fifth place in the conference standings last weekend with road victories over Cal Poly Pomona and Humboldt State.
Cal State L.A. is a force at the net, ranking 14th in the nation in blocks per set (2.46). The Golden Eagles are led by senior middle hitter Marquis Mora – an All-CCAA First Team selection last year and the program’s all-time blocking leader, Mora is eighth nationally in blocks per set (1.37) and 31st in hitting percentage (.367). In addition to topping the CCAA in blocks per set and hitting percentage, Mora ranks second in the conference in aces (25) and eighth in kills (198).
Mora is far from Cal State L.A.’s only offensive weapon. The Golden Eagles have three other talented hitters – senior Sukhjit Athwal and sophomores Kymberly Silveyra and Loreal Carter – that have combined for 362 kills on the season. Setting them all up is freshman Alexandra Bura, who ranks eighth in the CCAA in assists per set (8.71).
The Wildcats beat the Golden Eagles in both head-to-head matchups last season. All-time, Chico State has won 28 of 37 meetings between the two teams.
You can follow the action of both Chico State matches online via Live Stats on the Wildcat Athletics website.
CLICK HERE for Live Stats
