FRESNO, Calif. – The Chico State volleyball team had to play catch-up from the beginning of each set, but the Wildcats came through and took 3-of-4 from Dominican (25-20, 27-25, 23-25, 25-20) at Fresno Pacific's Sunbird Classic Saturday. The Wildcats close out the first weekend of the season 2-1.
Although both sides racked up 50 kills in the match, one of the big differences was the attack errors. Chico State committed 16 errors while Dominican had 30.
The Wildcats finished the morning hitting .287 on the attack while ending the first three matches at .220. Chico State also had 16 or less attacking miscues on the weekend.
Kassandra Nall racked up 14 kills, just one shy from her career best, Cashe Olswang had 10 kills and assists each for a double-double. Jessie Camarillo also had a dozen digs while Brynna Geibel had 10. Claire Nordeen dished out 29 assists to lead the 'Cats in that column.
Dominican ended the day hitting .138 with three individuals reaching 10 kills.
Chico State found itself down 8-3 in the first set. The tide began to shift when the 'Cats went on an 9-3 run to take their first lead of the match at 19-17. The Penguins kept the score within one until the Wildcats won five of the final six rallies to win the opening round.
Down 12-6 in the second set, the Wildcats got into a 6-1 momentum to get back into the game. The Penguins had a three-point run on three different occasions and had a 23-18 lead when the Wildcats won six straight rallies to move into set point. Dominican got two points to retake the set win opportunity, but Chico State got back-to-back kills from Olswang and Kailie Flores followed by an attacking error to take the set and a 2-0 match lead.
The Wildcats had to climb themselves out of a 21-17 hole in the third set. Nall got the sideout and back-to-back errors by Dominican allowed Chico State to get to within one. Both teams traded off points, but it was the Penguins that crossed the finish line and salvage the third game.
The fourth game started with Chico State down 8-4. The Wildcats benefited from four Penguin errors as well as a kill by Flores to tie the game at nine. Dominican had an 18-17 edge when Chico State ignited an 8-2 rally to take both the set and match.
Chico State returns to the Central Valley next weekend to play in Stanislaus State's Invitational, starting Thursday with future CCAA member UC Merced at 3 p.m. The Bobcats are in a transition period from NAIA to NCAA Division II and will join the CCAA for the 2025-26 season.
Wildcat Notes
- It is the third time in the last four seasons the Wildcats have gone 2-1 in their first three matches.
- Chico State is now 14-1 against Dominican, with the only defeat back in 2016.
- After recording 25 assists in the first two matches on Saturday, freshman Claire Nordeen surpassed that total with 29 against Dominican.
- The Wildcats recorded their highest attack percentage (.287) since playing New Mexico Highlands in last year's weekend opener in Turlock. They hit .286 in the win that year.
