Pioneers win sixth straight with CCAA-opening victory over Sonoma State
Senior Roxanne Neely led the Pioneers with 18 assists and added seven kills and three aces in the win over Sonoma State. (Photo: Ron Allen)
- September 10, 2010
HAYWARD, Calif. - In a hard-fought match, the Cal State East Bay women's volleyball team defeated visiting Sonoma State 3-1 (25-22, 25-17, 20-25, 25-19) in a CCAA opener for both teams. The Pioneers (6-0) maintained their undefeated record with their sixth-straight win and first victory over the Seawolves, who received votes in this week's AVCA poll, since joining the CCAA last year.
The first set saw the two teams tie the score five times, leading up to a 23-23 deadlock. Freshman outside hitter Katie Allen's kill broke up the tie, giving the Pioneers the chance to serve for set point. An attack error from the Seawolves on the subsequent serve handed the Pioneers the game one win, 25-23.
Cal State East Bay got out to a quick start in the second set, building a 23-14 advantage. Though the Seawolves closed the gap with three more points, the Pioneers took advantage of two Sonoma State errors to take the second set, 25-17.
The third set saw Sonoma State bounce back and snag a 25-20 victory thanks to .289 hitting and 15 kills. The Pioneers recorded just eight kills and committed six errors in 29 attempts in the third set, giving the Seawolves a 25-20 win and sending the match into a fourth set with East Bay leading 2-1.
With the opportunity to close out the match in the fourth set, the Pioneers took an early 5-2 lead and never looked back. CSUEB never trailed in the fourth set and took advantage of 10 Sonoma State attack errors. The Seawolves hit at a -.051 clip to finish the match and give East Bay its first CCAA win of the season.
East Bay only hit at a .157 clip, but got things done at the net and on the service line with 11 total blocks and nine aces, including five solo blocks from sophomore middle blocker Brianna Bryant and three aces from senior Roxanne Neely. Allyson Sather led Sonoma State with 11 kills while Taylor Krenwinkel had 19 digs.
"Our blocking was the difference in the victory," Head Coach Jim Spagle said. "We had a lot of kids step up tonight against a real good team."
Neely dished out a team-leading 18 assists, while adding seven kills. Allen had a team-high eight kills while Lauren Massa turned in another solid defensive performance with 18 digs. Senior Ariel Ajagu also had a good night, hitting at a .462 clip with no errors and six kills.
Cal State East Bay will look to keep the streak alive tomorrow night when its hosts Humboldt State at Pioneer Gym. The Jacks come into the match looking for their first victory of the season after falling to UC San Diego, 3-0, on Friday night. The Pioneers and Jacks are set for a 7 p.m. first serve on Saturday, with live statistics available .