Box Score San Francisco – The SF State Women's Volleyball team played by far its most complete match of the young season. In doing so, the Gators took down seventh ranked Cal State San Bernardino in a thrilling five set victory in the first official athletic competition on the new gym floor, winning 3-2 (25-20, 19-25, 21-25, 25-23, 15-12).
In a total team effort, the Gators (4-4/2-1 CCAA) had five players tally 10 or more kills on the evening, as SF State defeated the Coyotes (5-2/2-1 CCAA) for the first time since 1992. Leading the attack for SF State was junior middle
Kaileen Mejia who had a tremendous performance, posting 16 kills on 30 swings with four errors for a .400 attack percentage, she also added three block assists on the night, two coming in the final two plays of the game.
Melissa Horton also had a stellar evening, finishing with 16 kills on 38 swings in a gritty effort, she was also a force at the night tallying two total blocks and teamed up with Mejia to put the Coyotes away for good in that fifth and final set.
Jaclyn Clark,
Jazmine Williams and
Bria Morgan joined in the acation, finishing with 14, 12 and 10 kills respectively. Clark tallied a double-double with 16 digs to go along with her kills. Setter
Jacquie Brice had a big night, recording 51 assists and 14 digs for her third double-double of the year.
Jessica Nicerio tallied a match-high 28 digs tying a career-high.
The Gators were devastating with the serve all night, tallying nine aces of the evening. Nicerio led with four, Clark added three while Brice and
Arianna Cruz added an ace as well.
SF State came out of the gate on fire. The Gators hit .324 tallying 17 kills on 37 swings in the opening frame. Midway through the set, the Coyotes had a comfortable 15-10 lead, but a kill by Clark started a 9-4 run that eventually saw the set tied at 19. With the Gators feeding off the crowds energy, SF State eventually took the set 25-20 following three-straight kills by the Gators.
In a tight match that saw 31 tie scores and 11 lead changes, the Coyotes would take sets two and three. Cal State San Bernardino hit .485 and .424 in those sets, while the Gators hit .143 and .282 respectively.
In the crucial fourth set the Gators once again battled back, with the match tied at 16, Horton had the big kill that put SF State out front for good. The Gators let the Coyotes cut the lead to one, 24-23 before Mejia absolutely blasted a ball through the block for the kill to seal the game and send the game to a fifth and final set.
The fifth set took three lead changes and eight tie scores before the Gators took the lead for good on a kill by Clark. Back-to-back blocks by Mejia and Horton sealed the set and the match and sent the Gator faithful home happy.
SF State returns to action tomorrow, when it hosts Humboldt State in the second match of a four-match home stand. First serve is slated for 7:00 p.m.
Complete Box Score (HTML)Post Match Video
