BOX SCORE #25 Cal State San Bernardino def. Sonoma State 3-1 (25-21, 19-25, 25-23, 28-26) -- Box Score
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. -- For the first time since 2009, the Sonoma State women's volleyball team earned a set victory over Cal State San Bernardino, but it wouldn't be enough as the host Coyotes (19-8, 16-3 CCAA) held on for a 3-1 win over the Seawolves (19-8, 13-6 CCAA) on Friday at Coussoulis Arena.
Caylie Seitz led all hitters with 16 kills, followed by 14 from
Ally Sather, combining for 30 of the team's 61 kills on the night.
With just three matches left in the regular season, Sonoma State will most likely need to win all three to put itself in position to qualify for its fifth straight NCAA tournament appearance. The Seawolves, who are now in fourth place in the CCAA standings, one game behind San Francisco State and tomorrow night's opponent, UC San Diego, came into the weekend at No. 9 in the West Region poll for the second consecutive week. SSU will need to be ranked in the top eight in the final regional poll that is scheduled to be released via a live NCAA tournament selection show on Sun., Nov. 19 at 7:00 pm to qualify for the postseason.
Despite the loss, Sonoma State was able to break a 24-set losing streak against Cal State San Bernardino. The Seawolves' 25-19 win in set number two was the first set victory since SSU captured a victory in the opening set of a 3-1 loss back on Sept. 26, 2009. The Coyotes have won 32 consecutive matches over the Seawolves, dating back to 1997, outscoring SSU 96-6 in that span.
Both teams would end with an identical hitting percentage (.151), but Sonoma State had the upper hand in kills, smashing 19 more kills to the floor than 25th-ranked Cal State San Bernardino (61-42). However, the Coyotes' defense stepped up big at the net when they needed to, racking up 18 total blocks on Seawolf hitters. Mercedes Winchester was a brick wall on the front line for CSUSB, recording nine assisted blocks and one solo stop. Camille Smith and Brenna McIntosh helped out with six assisted rejections to keep the hard-hitting SSU offense in check.
After falling in the opening set, 25-21 and trailing 19-18 in the second set, Sonoma State scored the final seven points to knot the match at one set apiece. A see-saw battle was again the story in the third frame. Down 20-17, the Seawolves chipped away at the Coyote lead and eventually tied it at 22-all, but the block party continued for Cal State San Bernardino, as it would block its way to a 25-23 set win and the 2-1 match lead.
In the fourth set, SSU fought back from a 16-10 deficit to tie it at 19-19 before taking a 23-20 lead with hopes of forcing a fifth and deciding set, CSUSB rallied to even the score at 23-23 and fight off set-point at 25-24 before scoring the four of the set's next five points to clinch the match with an emotional 28-26 win.
Kelsey Hull came up with nine kills and 13 digs for the Seawolves on Friday,
Regan Richert hammered in eight kills and
Madelyn Densberger added seven.
Nicole Gragnola made 23 digs to lead all defenders.
For Cal State San Bernardino, Winchester was the only Coyote with double-figure kills (11), followed by McIntosh and Alexandra Torline with eight apiece. CSUSB's win would come at the net defensively, though, with the aforementioned 18 total blocks.
With just three matches left in the regular season, Sonoma State will continue its regular season-ending road trip on Saturday, heading south to La Jolla to take on UC San Diego. First serve is set for 7:00 p.m. in RIMAC Arena.
