ROHNERT PARK—The Chico State volleyball team began Saturday fresh off a victory over Humboldt State and owning a share of first place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) North Division. The rest of the day didn't bode as well. Heavy highway traffic between Arcata and Rohnert Park forced the Wildcats' scheduled match with Sonoma State to be pushed back 30 minutes, and by the end of the night, the Wildcats had tumbled all the way to fifth place in the tight North race, as the Seawolves dealt the 'Cats a 26-24, 15-25, 25-23, 25-18 road defeat at the Wolves' Den.
Saturday's setback dropped Chico State to 11-6 on the season and 4-5 in the CCAA. Sonoma State improved to 8-9 on the season and 4-4 in conference play.
Bekah Boyle posted 15 kills and 10 digs for the Wildcats Saturday, with Kim Wright adding 15 kills and five blocks. Kelley Jacome contributed 10 kills and four blocks, while Kennedy Rice and Lindsey Bryant scored eight and six kills, respectively. Nicole Desrochers racked up 47 assists and notched three service aces, with Brooke Fogel netting a team-high 13 digs on the night.
Sonoma State raced out to an 11-5 lead in the opening set, but thanks to multiple kills by Boyle and Rice, the Wildcats slowly whittled away at the deficit, pulling to within 15-14. The Seawolves pushed their advantage to 20-17, but a kill by Rice, a Wright solo block, two Wright/Jacome combo blocks and another combo block by Jacome and Bryant fueled a 7-0 Chico State run to put the 'Cats up 24-20. The big comeback turned out to be all for naught, as the Wildcats were unable to put the Seawolves away. Sonoma State finished the set with a flourish, registering six unanswered points to steal the 26-24 victory.
Chico State spotted the Seawolves the first two points of the second set before fashioning a 9-2 run—Boyle, Wright, Jacome and Desrochers all posting kills—to put the Wildcats on top. A pair of Desrochers aces and two Boyle kills ballooned the 'Cats' lead to 13-6, but Sonoma tallied five of the next six points to narrow the gap to three. The Wildcats made sure the Seawolves didn't steal another set, using an Esti Wilson ace and kills by Boyle, Jacome, Wright, and Rice to highlight an 8-2 run to make the score 22-13. Two more Boyle kills and a Sonoma State error gave Chico State the final points needed to secure the 25-15 win.
The Seawolves came flying out of the gate in the third set, quickly building an 8-2 lead. Sonoma was still up 11-5 when kills by Boyle, Jacome and Bryant cut the deficit to 12-9. With the Seawolves leading 19-14, the 'Cats came out of a timeout on a 7-2 run—Boyle, Wright, Rice and Bryant smashed kills; Bryant and Jacome combined for a block and Fogel added an ace—to knot up the contest at 21-all. Sonoma came back to score three in a row, and despite the Wildcats surviving two set points with kills from Rice and Wright, the Seawolves put the set away with an Emily Eaton kill to win 25-23.
Kills by Jacome, Wright, Boyle, Bryant and Rice staked Chico State to an 8-7 lead in the fourth set, but five unanswered points by Sonoma pushed the Seawolves in front. It was a lead Sonoma would not relinquish. The Wildcats battled, and thanks to three Jacome kills, crept to within 18-16. But that would turn out to be the 'Cats' last hurrah, as the Seawolves closed things out on a 7-2 run to win the set going away 25-18 to take the match.
The Wildcats conclude their four-match road stretch Tuesday night, when they travel to Hayward to face Cal State East Bay (8-8, 4-4 CCAA). First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.
