CHICO, Calif. – For the second straight night, the San Francisco State women's volleyball team came up short against a conference opponent, falling to Chico State (25-18, 23-25, 25-18, 25-21) on the road in a California Collegiate Athletic Association match at Acker Gymnasium.
With the loss, the Gators slip to 4-5 on the season and 0-4 in conference play, while the Wildcats won their third straight, raising their record to 7-2 overall and 2-1 in the CCAA.
In a closely contested battle, both teams had four players post double-digit kill totals, including
Robyn Hall, who led SF State with 15 put-aways and a .333 hitting percentage.
Kelly Ostello (12 kills),
Halimah Oswald (10 kills) and
Megan Johnson (10 kills) also got into the act for the Purple and Gold, while
Iris Tolenada and
Sarah Kurfess finished with 43 assists and 18 digs, respectively.
Unfortunately, Chico State bettered the Gators' offensive display, outhitting the Purple and Gold .311-.252, while maintaining a 58-54 edge in kills and a 7-4 margin in blocks. Individually, Makenzie Snyder collected a match-best 16 put-aways for the hosts, followed by Jessica Leek (13 kills), Alex Kurtz (12 kills) and Jacqueline Johnson (12 kills), while Sable Villaescusa contributed 55 assists.
The Gators came out swinging in the opening set as kill by Hall gave the visitors an early 8-3 advantage, prompting a Wildcat timeout. Chico State stole the momentum at this juncture as Leek and Jacqueline Johnson combined on a block, capping a 9-2 run to put the host school ahead to stay at 12-10. The Wildcats methodically increased their lead to eight, with a Shurtz kill providing the clinching point.
SF State fought back in the second stanza, hitting at a .417 clip on 16 kills on 36 attempts with just one error to tie the match at one set apiece. Trailing 11-9, three Oswald kills highlighted an 8-3 spurt to give the Gators an 18-14 cushion. The Purple and Gold was unable to extend the margin as a Snyder kill knotted the score at 22-22 moments later. SF State stood its ground, however, taking advantage of an errant Chico attack, while Oswald and
Megan Johnson combined on a block, putting the Gators in front 24-22. A Jacqueline Johnson kill tightened the score, but Tolenada ended the suspense with a put-away on the ensuing serve.
SF State was unable to match its offensive efficiency in set number three, finishing with just nine kills during the frame. The Gators jumped to an early 5-4 lead until a Snyder kill punctuated a timely 10-5 run to give the Wildcats a 14-10 bulge they would not relinquish. SF State pulled to within two at 16-14 following a
Katie Judd service ace; however, back-to-back kills by Leek and Kurtz squelched the Gator rally.
The two sides slugged it out in the fourth and final frame, combining for five ties and three lead changes, with a block by Tolenada and Oswald supplying the Gators a slight 15-12 advantage. However, Chico once again answered the bell with an 8-3 run, taking advantage of a bad set and an attack error to vault into the lead for good at 20-18. Shortly thereafter, a Snyder kill extended the Wildcat lead to three at 24-21, while Villaescusa sealed the match with a service ace.
SF State concludes its road trip on Saturday when it travels to Turlock, Calif., to face Cal State Stanislaus beginning at 7 p.m.
Box Score
