LOS ANGELES -- Cal State LA's volleyball team pushed No. 9 Cal State San Bernardino to five sets Thursday before falling, 25-23, 19-25, 23-25, 25-16, 15-12, in a California Collegiate Athletic Association match at University Gym.
The Golden Eagles rallied from an opening-set loss to take a 2-1 lead, but the Coyotes captured the final two sets to pull out the victory. Cal State LA dropped to 6-12 overall and 5-3 in conference play, while Cal State San Bernardino improved to 17-2 and 8-1.
Samarah DaCoud led the Golden Eagles with a match-high 21 kills, 15 digs and two service aces. Amber Walker added 12 kills while hitting .303 and contributed three blocks.
Ruby Ennis directed the offense with 40 assists and added five kills, nine digs, six blocks and an ace. Juliana Speiski led Cal State LA with 17 digs, while Kylie Grundman finished with 13 digs and two aces.
Kacie Pedersen paced Cal State San Bernardino with 19 kills and 11 digs, while Sarai Ross added 14 kills. McKenna Edwards had 39 assists and 13 digs, and Saniyah Sobers collected a match-high 24 digs and three aces.
After narrowly dropping the first set, Cal State LA responded with a 25-19 victory in the second. The Golden Eagles put down 14 kills and held the Coyotes to a .091 hitting percentage to even the match.
Cal State LA delivered its strongest offensive set in the third, recording 18 kills and hitting .364. The tightly contested frame featured 12 ties and five lead changes before the Golden Eagles secured a 25-23 win and moved within one set of victory.
Cal State San Bernardino answered by hitting .306 in the fourth while limiting Cal State LA to nine kills and a .095 percentage, forcing a deciding set with a 25-16 win.
The fifth set featured five ties and two lead changes, but the Coyotes prevailed, 15-12. Both offenses struggled in the final frame, with Cal State San Bernardino recording five kills and five attack errors and Cal State LA finishing with four kills and five errors.
