CHICO, Calif. – It took five sets, but Acker Gym prevailed for the Chico State volleyball team as the Wildcats outlasted a reeling Stanislaus State (25-15, 27-25, 22-25, 23-25, 15-10) to split the home-and-home series Friday.
Chico State snaps a five-match skid to move to 7-10 overall and 4-6 in the CCAA. The Wildcats also halted Stanislaus State's four-match win streak and handed the Warriors their first true road loss on the season in six attempts. Stan State is now 13-5 overall and 6-4 in the CCAA.
It was a busy day on both sides of the ball for the Wildcats. While the 'Cats compiled a .237 on the attack, the back line combined for 93 digs. Kassandra Nall, Maria Wahl and Cashe Olswang each had 14 of the Wildcats' 65 kills. Jessie Camarillo had 22 digs and was followed by Nall with a career-high 17. Olswang also set a Wildcat high in kills.
Claire Nordeen was another Wildcat with a double-double, dishing out 27 assists and a dozen digs.
Brynna Geibel rounded out the defense with 11 digs.
The Warriors were led by Emily Meyer with a dozen kills while Gabby Rawson made 27 digs, far more compared to 13 she made in Tuesday's meeting at Fitzpatrick Arena.
Much like the Warriors used their home court to carry momentum and sweep Chico State on Tuesday, the Wildcats returned the favor tonight. Chico State opened the match winning the first four serves and a six-straight run put the Wildcats in complete control of the set, taking a 20-11 lead en route the win.
The second set was a tight one from start to finish. The Wildcats were in set point, but the Warriors scored two points to tie the game. Tied at 25, Chico State got back-to-back kills from Kailie Flores and Gwyneth Wentzel to take the second game 27-25 and a 2-0 match lead.
Set three was about momentum. Stan State was the first to go on a momentum, winning 11 of 12 rallies to take a 21-14 lead. Chico State put the pedal to the medal and went on an 8-2 run to tie the game at 22. The 'Cats would eventually crash as Stan State scored three unanswered points to avoid the match sweep.
The Wildcats opened the fourth game by winning six of the first seven points and they had to defend that lead tightly. It was 23-20 in favor of Chico State until Stan State won five straight points to force a deciding round.
After Stan State won three straight serves to tie the deciding set at eight, the Wildcats got two crucial points from Olswang and Nall to move ahead by two points. The Wildcats would go on to outscore the Warriors 5-1 to win the match.
The homestand continues into Friday with Cal State San Marcos visiting Acker Gym for a 5 p.m. start. A reminder that Saturday's match against Cal Poly Pomona is at 1 p.m.
