Box Score

LOS ANGELES – Cal State L.A.'s women's volleyball team put an end to any upset hopes Cal State Stanislaus might have had Wednesday night in a California Collegiate Athletic Association match.

 

The Golden Eagles left the door open for the Warriors briefly Wednesday before regrouping for a 25-14, 25-18, 21-25, 25-14 victory in the Eagles Nest. Cal State L.A. (20-8, 16-5 CCAA) clinched at least a share of third place in the conference with one regular-season match remaining.

 

The Golden Eagles, ranked 20^th in the nation and sixth in the most recent NCAA Division II West Region rankings, reached the 20-win plateau for the second straight year and for the third time in the past five years. Cal State L.A., with first-year head coach Randi Smart, is also trying to reach the NCAA playoffs for the sixth consecutive season. The final regular-season rankings will come out on Thursday and the selections will be announced on Sunday evening.

 

Cal State L.A. enjoyed a 54-33 advantage in kills and hit at a .270 percentage while limiting Cal State Stanislaus to just .073. Cal State L.A. also had nine service aces and held a 7-4 blocking edge.

 

Marquis Mora had a match-high 13 kills and a match-high five blocks to lead Cal State L.A., which won for the 11^th time in its last 13 matches. Gabriela Bulawczyk had 11 kills and 11 digs, while Mary Laupepa had 10 kills and four service aces. Laupepa hit a sizzling .769 with 10 kills and no errors in 13 swings. Mora also had a tremendous hitting percentage, collecting her 13 kills in 20 swings with just one error for a .600 percentage.

 

Janay Bankston had 12 kills to lead Cal State Stanislaus (10-19, 4-17 CCAA), while Jennifer Marsh had nine kills.

 

Kaylynne De La Rosa had six kills and 37 set assists for Cal State L.A.

 

The Golden Eagles, coming off a four-set loss on Saturday to Cal State San Bernardino, broke open a tight first set with a 7-0 run based largely on the serving of Laupepa. That stretched a 12-10 advantage to 19-10 and Cal State L.A. led comfortably the rest of the way. A service ace by Chelsea Hamilton got the Golden Eagles to set point and a kill by Bulawczyk ended it.

 

Cal State L.A. opened up a 17-11 advantage in the second set, but Cal State Stanislaus kept battling and pulled to within 22-18 after a kill by Marsh. The Golden Eagles got to set point after two Cal State Stanislaus attack errors and a kill by Mora ended the set.

 

Cal State Stanislaus was able to extend the match with a strong performance in the third set. The Warriors led early, fell behind at 20-19, and then got back-to-back kills from Lianne Vicchio to take the lead for good. The Warriors used a pair of attack errors and a serving error to get to set point and a kill by Bankston sent the match to a fourth set.

 

Cal State L.A. regrouped and broke out to an 18-7 lead. The set was tied at 5-5, but the Golden Eagles went on a 13-2 run to take control of the contest. Cal State Stanislaus made a run to get back to within 18-12, but that was as close as the Warriors would get.

 

An ace by Laupepa made it 22-13 and, after a kill by Marsh, the Golden Eagles got a kill by Mora and back-to-back kills from De La Rosa to end it.

Cal State L.A. will wrap up its regular-season on Saturday with a home match against Chico State. The Golden Eagles will honor their two seniors, Bulawczyk and Keslie Brown, in pre-match ceremonies.