ROCKLIN—It took the Chico State volleyball team a mere 15 hours to rebound from Thursday's unproductive season-opening matches to post the program's first win of the 2022 campaign during second day action at the William Jessup Invitational. The Wildcats put it all together Friday afternoon against Simpson University, combining an aggressive offense attack with stealth serving and defense to down the Red Hawks 25-20, 25-20, 25-16 at Warrior Arena in Rocklin.
The victory improved Chico State's record on the young season to 1-2.
Grace Shepherd led the Wildcats with 11 kills on the day, with Zoe DiNardo and Lauryn Osendorf adding nine and seven kills, respectively. Bree Rodriguez registered five kills, three service aces, and two blocks; Lexi Carpenter collected a team-high 18 digs, and Kate Beezer racked up 11 digs and six aces—five coming in the final set. Brooke Ono dished out 31 assists for the victorious 'Cats.
The Wildcats utilized a Rodriguez service ace and kills by Shepherd and Osendorf to jump out to a 6-2 lead in the match's opening set. Simpson rallied back with four straight points to tie the score, but the Wildcats answered with a 6-0 run—highlighted by a Shepherd ace and kills by Osendorf and Jane Mcnulty—to go back in front 12-6. The 'Cats never relinquished the lead, though the Red Hawks were able to cut the deficit to three. A late DiNardo kill and a Simpson service error sealed the deal as Chico State outlasted the Red Hawks 25-20.
The second set saw the Wildcats take an early 6-5 lead, extending the advantage to 16-8 on the strength of kills by Mcnulty, Shepherd, and DiNardo, combo blocks by Rodriguez/Ono and Rodriguez/DiNardo, and aces by Rodriguez and Carpenter. Simpson used a 6-0 run to creep back to within two, but that was as close as the Red Hawks would get—DiNardo hammered three kills down the stretch, and Carpenter and Beezer delivered service aces as the 'Cats put the finishing touches on the 25-20 victory.
Chico State kept the pedal to the metal in set three, roaring out to a 7-0 lead—Beezer leading the way with three aces, with Rodriguez and Shepherd contributing kills. Simpson closed the gap to five on three different occasions, but the 'Cats stymied any sustained Red Hawk runs, as kills by Osendorf, DiNardo, and Rodriguez expanded Chico State's lead to nine at 17-8. Four straight Simpson points once again closed the gap to five, but the Wildcats closed out the set by taking advantage of five Red Hawk miscues, and combined with two more aces by Beezer and an Osendorf kill, cruised to the 25-16 set victory and the match sweep.
The Wildcats take the weekend off before returning to action next Friday and Saturday in San Rafael as part of the NorCal Kickoff, hosted by Dominican University. Chico State faces Dominican Friday, September 2 at 1 p.m., followed by a 5 p.m. match against Holy Names. The 'Cats conclude the two-day tournament Saturday, September 3 with contests versus Academy of Art at 1 p.m. and Fresno Pacific at 6 p.m.
