The 2022 season has just about come to a close, but the Chico State volleyball team is perhaps hungrier for success than it was at the start of fall competition. With only four matches remaining, the Wildcats pack their bags for the final time this weekend when they to the Bay Area Friday to square off against San Francisco State, followed by a Saturday showdown in Seaside against Cal State Monterey Bay. Both matches are slated to begin at 5 p.m.
Fans can follow this weekend's action online with Live Stats and live streaming video on the CCAA Network, with links available on the Wildcat Athletics website home page and on the volleyball schedule page. Access to the live video stream requires a subscription fee that grants users access to every CCAA event on the network, home and away.
Chico State looks to return to the win column Friday and Saturday—something that has eluded the Wildcats since mid-September. As a result, the Wildcats are 3-18 on the season and 1-13 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). The 'Cats had a tough go of things last week on the road, bowing to Cal State San Marcos Friday and dropping a three-set decision to Cal State East Bay on Saturday.
Chico State will try to even the season series with San Francisco State, who took the first meeting with the 'Cats September 17 at Acker Gym. The Wildcats beat Monterey Bay in five sets September 16, so a Chico State win Saturday would earn the 'Cats a series sweep of the Otters.
The Wildcats will be leaning heavily on Zoe DiNardo to set the tone offensively. The team's leader is kills (198) also ranks 10th among all CCAA hitters, and is ninth in kills per set (2.75). Though splitting time at setter with Caitlyn Eichhorst the past few weeks, Brooke Ono still ranks fourth in the conference in assists (569) and assists per set (7.79). Lexi Carpenter is eighth in the CCAA with 237 digs and ninth in digs per set (3.25).
San Francisco State, the Wildcats' Friday night opponent, will be trying to make up ground on the conference leaders as it fights for one of the six spots in the upcoming CCAA Tournament. Currently the Gators are on the outside looking in for getting into the postseason—San Francisco State enters the weekend 12-9 and in seventh place in the CCAA with an 8-6 conference mark.
The Gators have played well in October, however, winning five of seven decisions. Last week San Francisco State split a pair of road matches, sweeping Cal Poly Humboldt on Thursday before losing in four sets Saturday to Sonoma State.
The Gators feature a potent offense that includes five hitters with over 100 kills on the season. Freshman opposite hitters Tamiya Wilson leads the CCAA with 307 kills, with sophomore outside Alhana Velasquez (179 kills) and senior middle blocker Rebecca Rendahl (160 kills) providing plenty of production.
The Gators have won five of the last six meetings with Chico State, but the Wildcats lead the all-time series 44-24.
Cal State Monterey Bay, which takes on the Wildcats Saturday following a Friday night tilt with Stanislaus State, is out of the playoff hunt. The Otters are 8-13 overall and in ninth place in the CCAA with a 4-10 conference record. After falling to Sonoma State last Thursday, Monterey Bay snapped its six-match losing streak Saturday with a five-set win over Cal Poly Humboldt.
The Otters are led by senior outside hitters Lauren Reeves and Kaylie Honberger. Reeves ranks 10th in the CCAA with 205 kills, while Honberger has contributed 167 kills to the Monterey Bay attack. Sophomore middle blocker Mikayla Nolte ranks among the conference's top blockers with 70 stuffs on the season.
The Wildcats have topped the Otters in 11 of their last 14 meetings dating back to 2014, and lead the all-time series between the two teams 29-6.
