Box Score HONOLULU—For most of its season-opening match Thursday against Minot State, it appeared the Chico State volleyball team would enjoy a quick night's work. The Wildcats, in Honolulu competing in the three-day Hawaii Challenge, won the first two sets and twice in the third set were one point away from sweeping the match. The Beavers survived to take the set and rolled to victory in the fourth before the 'Cats came up clutch in the decisive fifth set, outlasting Minot State 26-24, 25-21, 25-27, 19-25, 15-11.
Makaela Keeve turned in one of her best performances ever as a Wildcat, connecting for a career-high 18 kills and adding three blocks while posting a sparkling .536 hitting percentage. Kim Wright contributed 15 kills and four blocks, with Gretta Kirkby flooring a career-best 11 kills and a pair of blocks. New Chico State setter Brooke Ono doled out 49 assists on the night, with Brooke Fogel pacing the 'Cats with 24 digs.
The first set saw Chico State roar out to a 5-1 lead on the strength of kills by Wright and Kirkby. The Beavers answered with a 9-2 run to go up 10-7, but the Wildcats grabbed the lead back 16-13 courtesy of a Wright solo block, a Kennedy Greenwood service ace, and kills by Kirkby, Keeve, Bekah Boyle, and Kelley Jacome. Minot State scored the next two points to close to within one, only to see Chico State go up 24-18 thanks to four Beavers errors and kills by Keeve and Ono.
Minot State would not roll over, however, scoring six unanswered points to tie up the contest at 24-all. Keeve foiled the Beavers' late comeback with back-to-back kills, putting the finishing touches on the Wildcats' 26-24 victory.
Wright registered a kill, an ace and combined with Ono for a block to help the 'Cats take an early 5-2 lead in the second set. Minot State prevented Chico State from extending its advantage, and the Wildcats led by only 12-10 until 6-2—powered by kills by Boyle, Keeve, Jacome, Wright, and a Jacome/Keeve combo block—made the score 20-14. The Beavers crept to within 24-21, but an Ono kill sealed the deal and provided the final point of the 'Cats' 25-21 win.
The two teams exchanged several early leads and split the first 18 points of the third set before Minot State was able to fashion a 14-10 lead. Four straight Wildcat points knotted up the contest, and it was still tied at 22-all when a pair of Keeve kills put Chico State on top 24-23 and one point away from securing its first win of the season. The Beavers, with their backs to the wall, refused to fold, surviving two match points and using a late 4-1 run to post a come-from-behind 27-25 victory.
Minot State rolled the momentum straight into set number four, jumping out to a 10-2 lead. The Beavers were up nine before Chico State finally got its offense untracked, as kills by Keeve, Wright and Kirkby powered a 7-2 run to pull the Wildcats to within 16-12. That would be as close as the 'Cats would get, however, and despite late kills by Kirkby and Boyle, Minot State posted nine of the final 16 points to win 25-19 and force a winner-take-all fifth set.
The decider was a nip-and-tuck affair early on. Chico State took a quick 4-2 lead, only to see Minot State put together a 5-2 run to go up 7-6. The Wildcats got hot at just the right time, stringing together kills by Keeve and Wright, a Boyle ace, a Kirkby/Wright combo block and two Beavers errors to take a 13-9 lead. Minot State scored twice to pull to within two, but this time the 'Cats would not be denied, as Kirkby and Wright delivered back-to-back kills to give Chico State the 15-11 win and the season-opening match victory.
Chico State returns to The Shark Tank Friday for a pair of matches as part of second day action at the Hawaii Challenge. The Wildcats take on Hawaii-Hilo at 3:30 p.m. Pacific time, followed by a 10 p.m. Pacific match against tournament co-host Hawaii Pacific. Fans can follow both matches on the Internet via Live Stats or live streaming video, available through the Wildcat Athletics website.
