Box Score

SAN FRANCISCO - Despite double-digit kill totals from three players, the San Francisco State women's volleyball team dropped a four-set decision to Cal State San Bernardino (22-25, 25-17, 25-7, 25-19) in a key California Collegiate Athletic Association match on Friday at The Swamp.

After capturing the first set, the Gators (11-4, 6-2 CCAA were unable to quiet the Coyotes' attack as the visitors hit .346 over the final three frames.

Meagan Wright tied for match-high honors with 12 kills, while Kelly Ostello and Megan Johnson contributed 11 put-aways apiece, but it wasn't enough as the Purple and Gold tallied just 11 more kills from the rest of its lineup and finished with its second-lowest hitting percentage of the season at .079.

Iris Tolenada handed out 34 assists, while Johnson and Jessica Nicerio tallied 11 digs each, with the former notching her sixth double-double of the year.

On the flip side, Alexandra Torline led CSUSB (9-6, 6-1 CCAA) with 12 kills, while Mercedes Winchester (.400) launched nine non-returnables to go along with four block assists.  In addition, Camille Smith doubled up on the stat sheet with 38 assists and 11 digs, while Arielle McCullough scooped up a match-high 21 digs.

As a team, the Coyotes owned a decisive advantage at the net, out-blocking the Gators by an 11-1 margin to go along with a 62-47 edge in digs. Brenna McIntosh finished with a match-best five block assists, while Torline and Smith racked up three apiece.

Things looked good for the Purple and Gold in the opening set as Jaclyn Clark nailed three consecutive aces and Ostello blasted a trio of kills during a 14-5 blitz that provided SF State a seemingly comfortable 20-11 cushion. CSUSB would not go quietly as McIntosh collected three kills and Smith recorded two aces of her own to fuel an 11-4 surge that brought the visitors to within 24-22.  However, the Gators regrouped following a timeout, with Ostello knocking home the clinching point on the ensuing serve.

SF State was unable to carry the momentum into the second stanza, mustering just nine put-aways overall, while the Coyote offense began to click.  The Gators actually nursed a slim 2-1 lead before CSUSB took control with the help of five Winchester kills and three total blocks to build an insurmountable 20-13 advantage.

The Purple and Gold's offense went missing in action during the third frame as well, with the host school totaling just five kills, while committing 12 attack errors on 32 swings.  Conversely, the Coyotes posted their best attack percentage of the night (.409) after recording 11 put-aways on an economical 22 attempts with just two errors.

CSUSB looked for the quick knockout in set number four, building a 4-0 bulge before SF State fought itself off the ropes with the help of Wright.  The SF State middle hitter totaled eight kills during the frame, including five during one stretch that gave the Gator faithful a glimmer of hope after the hosts nudged in front 16-15.  However, two put-aways by Ashley Solis served as bookends to a 10-3 closing rush by the Coyotes, who also took advantage of seven errant SF State attacks during that span, including a pair of stops at the net to sandbag the possibility of a fifth set.

The Gators, who now find themselves in third place in the CCAA race, will be back in action on Saturday when they tackle UC San Diego in another conference showdown at The Swamp.  The Tritons (11-4, 6-1 CCAA) maintained a share of first place in the league standings with CSUSB after defeating Sonoma State in five sets on Friday.