SEASIDE—As sure as the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, whenever the Chico State and Cal State Monterey Bay volleyball teams square off, it's a battle royal. So much so, that in 10 of the last 17 matchups dating back to 2009, the match has gone the full five sets. Saturday in Seaside, the Wildcats wanted nothing to do with that multi-year trend, and used an aggressive attack to take early control of the contest and eventually down the host Otters in four sets, 25-11, 25-20, 21-25, 25-14 at The Kelp Bed.
Saturday's win improved Chico State's season record to 9-3 and evens its California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) mark at 2-2. Cal State Monterey Bay dropped its third straight decision to slip to 6-5 overall and 1-3 in conference play.
Bekah Boyle's 17 kills led a Wildcats offense that posted a solid .325 hitting percentage on the night. Kim Wright added 14 kills and four blocks, while Makaela Keeve tied her career high with 13 kills to go along with four blocks. Nicole Desrochers doled out 48 assists for the 'Cats, with Brooke Fogel racking up 11 digs.
The 'Cats also collected a season-high 14 service aces against the Otters. Fogel led the way with four aces; Boyle added three, and Wright chipped in with a pair of aces.
Chico State came flying out of the gate in the opening set, using a Desrochers ace, multiple kills by Keeve, Boyle and Kennedy Rice, plus Keeve/Boyle and Keeve/Kelley Jacome combo blocks to build an early 11-4 lead. Monterey Bay responded with back-to-back points, only to see the Wildcats reel off a 9-2 run—highlighted by Fogel and Esti Wilson aces, two Rice/Wright combo blocks and kills by Keeve, Jacome, Wright and Rice—to extend their advantage to 20-8. Late kills by Wright, Boyle and Desrochers put the finishing touches on the 'Cats' 25-11 win.
Chico State kept the pedal to the metal in the second set: two Fogel aces, two by Rice and one ace by Wilson, along with kills by Wright and Jacome, quickly put the Wildcats in front 10-3. Monterey Bay closed to within 17-14, but two kills apiece by Wright and Boyle spurred a 5-1 Chico State run to put the 'Cats up 22-15. Once again the Otters cut the deficit to four, but a Monterey Bay service error gave the Wildcats the final point needed to cement the 25-20 victory.
A pair of Wright kills to open the third set got the 'Cats thinking about a match sweep, but the Otters had other ideas, scoring 15 of the next 21 points to put together a 16-8 lead. Boyle single-handedly kept Chico State in the contest, connecting for three kills and an ace, and with Wright adding a kill, ace, and solo block, the Wildcats crept to within 23-21. Monterey Bay held firm, though, coming out of a timeout with back-to-back kills to register the 25-21 victory.
The Otters went out in front 5-3 in the fourth set, but four kills by both Boyle and Keeve, a Boyle ace and two Keeve/Rice combo blocks fueled a 15-5 Chico State run to put the 'Cats on top 18-10. Monterey Bay whittled the deficit to 20-14, only to see the Wildcats close things out on a 5-0 run, using an ace by Wright and kills by Desrochers and Keeve to take the set 25-14 and the match.
Chico State returns to Acker Gym next weekend for a pair of important CCAA matchups. Friday the Wildcats host San Francisco State, with Cal State East Bay coming to town on Saturday. Both matches are scheduled to get underway at 7 p.m.
