CHICO, Calif. – The Haunted Hall at Acker Gym attracted plenty of costumed youngsters Saturday afternoon, but for the Chico State volleyball team, the day’s treats stopped there as the No. 2 UC San Diego Tritons handed out most of the tricks, running its winning streak to 15 straight by beating the No. 25 Wildcats in three sets, 25-21, 25-23 and 25-17.
The loss dropped Chico State to 21-7 on the year and 12-6 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). UC San Diego, in a dogfight with Cal State San Bernardino for the top spot in the conference standings, improved to 24-1 overall with Saturday’s win and 16-1 in conference play.
The Tritons broke out to an early 7-3 lead in the opening set, and had an answer to just about every Chico State rally attempt. With the score 9-7, UC San Diego scored nine of the next 13 points to fashion a more comfortable 18-11 advantage. The Wildcats used kills by Makenzie Snyder, Gillian Heydorff and Jacqueline Johnson to pull to within 21-19, but three Triton kills and a service ace by Cara Simonsen sealed UC San Diego’s 25-21 opening set victory.
The match’s second set was the most tightly contested of the afternoon, as neither team led by more than two the entire way. Snyder delivered seven kills for Chico State in the set, but the Wildcats let two late leads (16-14 and 20-19) slip away, and UC San Diego, after grabbing a 21-20 advantage, used two kills apiece from Katie Condon and Sylvia Schmidt to power its way to the 25-23 win.
The Tritons were in complete charge of the third set, spotting Chico State an early 3-2 lead, then going on an 18-8 run to go up 20-11. The Wildcats didn’t give up and battled ‘til the end, but could get no closer than six points as Janessa Werhane plunged the dagger with a service ace to give UC San Diego the 25-17 victory and the sweep of the match.
Snyder finished the day with a team-high 10 kills and added nine digs for Chico State, while Heydorff had 10 kills, a service ace and two solo blocks on defense. Sable Villaescusa contributed 28 assists to the Wildcats’ cause, while Jessica Simms led the team with 13 digs. Schmidt posted a match-high 19 kills for UC San Diego while the CCAA’s top setter, Elaine Chen, piled up 41 assists and delivered four service aces in the winning effort.
BOX SCORE
Chico State will play its final two home matches of the regular season next Friday and Saturday – on Friday, November 6 the Wildcats welcome Sonoma State to Acker Gym, followed by a Saturday showdown with Humboldt State. Both matches are scheduled for 7:00 p.m.