DENVER -- Cal State LA's women's volleyball team got in a full day of competition - and then some - on the opening day of the Colorado Premier Challenge.

The No. 16 Golden Eagles split a pair of five-set matches against top competition on Friday to kick things off at one of the toughest tournaments in the country. Cal State LA (2-4) opened the day with a five-set win over No. 13 West Florida before falling in a five-set match against Central Missouri. Cal State LA is making its first appearance in the prestigious tournament since 2007 and just its second overall.

Cal State LA advances to the Silver Bracket and will play its first match on Saturday against host Regis at 10:30 a.m. PST If the Golden Eagles win, they'll play their final match at 6 p.m. PST, if they lose it will be at 3:30 p.m. PST.

The Golden Eagles rallied from a 2-1 deficit in the opening match to beat West Florida, 20-25, 25-16, 23-25, 25-18, 15-12. Emily Elliott had 15 kills and hit at a .440 percentage, while Iane Henke had 15 kills, three aces and three blocks. 

In the nightcap, the Golden Eagles held a 2-1 deficit, but couldn't hold on as Central Missouri rallied for a 25-19, 24-26, 18-25, 25-19, 15-9 decision. Elliott had a season-high 25 kills in the match, while Henke also had a season-high with 20 kills, two aces and a team-high 19 digs.

Cal State LA got big production from several players in the opening match. Haley Roundtree had five kills and a season-high eight blocks, Arielle Chandler stepped up and had 23 big set assists, Zuhal Cetin had eight kills and two blocks and Rachel Lowe had five kills, a .571 hitting percentage and three blocks.

West Florida edged Cal State LA in kills, 57-55, while the Golden Eagles hit at a .216 percentage to .136 for the Argonauts. The Golden Eagles had a 14.5 - 11 advantage in blocks. Cal State LA had five aces, led by Henke's three, and six service errors, while West Florida had two aces and nine errors.

After a slow start, the Golden Eagles got back into the match with a big second set. Cal State LA held a slim 11-10 lead before taking control with a 10-2 run. Rebecca Topete served for three straight points to put the Golden Eagles ahead, 21-12. A block by Matalasi Danielson and Roundtree , a kill by Henke and an attack error gave the Golden Eagles the big lead. A kill by Elliott got the Golden Eagles to set point and an attack error evened the match.

The third set was tied as late as 20-20 following a block by Roundtree, but West Florida scored the next two points and held on to take the frame. A kill by Elliott staved off one set point at 24-22, but a kill by West Florida's Bailee Sterling ended the frame.

Cal State LA jumped out to big leads in the fourth set, taking a 17-11 lead after a kill by Danielson. A service ace by Henke got the Golden Eagles to set point at 24-17 and a kill by Cetin sent the game into a fifth set.

Jameson Sanders had a big service run to help Cal State LA jump out to a 6-3 lead in the fifth set, only to see West Florida tie it at 6-6. The Golden Eagles promptly scored the next two points on a block by Cetin and Lowe and an attack error and led the rest of the match.Two attack errors on Topete's serve boosted Cal State LA's lead to 13-8, a kill by Henke made it 14-10 and a kill by Henke ended the match, 15-12.

The script was reversed in Cal State LA's match against Central Missouri. Cal State LA had a 64-58 edge in kills, but Missouri State outhit the Golden Eagles, .242-.207. Central Missouri had a slim 9-8 edge in blocks and a 10-5 advantage in service aces.

After dropping the first set, Cal State LA fought off a set point in the second set to even the match. A kill by Henke tied it at 24-24, an attack error got the Golden Eagles to set point and a block by Elliott and Roundtree evened the match.

Cal State LA then took a 2-1 lead by taking the third set. The Golden Eagles erased a 1-0 deficit with four straight points and led the rest of the set. Cal State LA opened up a 22-13 lead and led 23-18 before a service error and a kill by Henke ended the set.

The Golden Eagles, though, couldn't hold onto their lead. Cal State LA was tied at 19-19 in the fourth set, but Central Missouri scored the final six points of the set to send the match to a deciding frame.

That set also got away from the Golden Eagles, who scored the opening point of the final set only to see Central Missouri go on a 6-0 run and never look back.

Cal State LA will now face host Regis on Saturday in a rematch of last week's first match at the Yotes Classic Showcase in San Bernardino that was won by the Rangers in five sets.