LOS ANGELES – Cal State LA's women's volleyball team had the gym rocking Saturday night, most notably with a big California Collegiate Athletic Association win over No. 13 Cal State San Bernardino.
The Golden Eagles shook off a slow start and stormed back to beat the Coyotes, 18-25, 25-19, 25-14, 25-18 to complete an unbeaten weekend in their first two home matches of the season. Cal State LA (7-5, 3-1 CCAA) used a balanced offensive attack that saw four players get at least nine kills.
Cal State LA snapped a seven-match losing streak to the Coyotes dating back to 2012.
Alma Serna led the way with 17 kills and six blocks and hit at a .424 percentage. She finished with a match-high 22 points.
Sifa Faaiu had her best match of the season with 14 kills, three blocks and 13 digs.
JamieAnn Bero had 13 kills and two blocks.
Kelsey Molnar had 53 set assists, two aces and two blocks, while
Lauren Gomez had nine kills and a team-high 14 digs.
Lauren Nicholson had a team-high 13 kills and 11 digs for Cal State San Bernardino (8-3, 2-1 CCAA).
Cal State LA had an overwhelming 62-36 advantage in kills and outhit the Coyotes, .273 - .154. The Coyotes had a 12-10 edge in blocks, while Cal State LA had a 9-6 edge in service aces.
The Golden Eagles also had 70 digs and extended several rallies during the match with unbelievable plays. Four Golden Eagles finished with at least 10 digs – Gomez with 14, Faaiu with 13,
Cynthia Giron with 12 and
Taylor Kushner with 10. Kushner also contributed seven kills, 10 digs and two blocks.
After dropping the first set, the Golden Eagles fell behind, 4-1, early in the second set. Trailing 7-6, the Golden Eagles scored four straight points and went on an extended run that opened up a 17-9 advantage. Bero had three straight kills during that stretch and Serna had a long serving run. The Golden Eagles closed out the set with back-to-back kills by Faaiu.
After an entertaining intermission that included a well-received performance by a Cal State LA dance group, the Golden Eagles took control in a dominating third-set performance. Cal State LA was tied in the set, 8-8, but outscored the Coyotes, 17-6, the rest of the way. Kushner had a strong serving run that included an ace and Faaiu once again had the kill that ended the set.
Cal State LA jumped out to a 15-9 lead in the fourth set following a block by Serna and Faaiu and held off repeated Cal State San Bernardino challenges. The Coyotes got as close as 19-16, but kill by Bero and Serna opened up a five-point advantage. A kill by Kushner made it 22-17, a kill by Serna made it 23-18 and a kill by Serna and ace by Gomez ended the match.
Cal State LA will return to action next Friday with a road match at defending conference champion Sonoma State.