Cal State San Bernardino, ranked No. 1 in NCAA Division II, battled a determined Cal Poly Pomona for three sets before taking the measure of the No. 20 Broncos in the fourth set for a 3-1 California Collegiate Athletic Association volleyball victory Wednesday night.
A cheering crowd of 514 fans made lots of noise in Coussoulis Arena as the Coyotes came from behind twice to pull out crucial sets in defeating the Broncos (7-3 overall, 4-1 in the CCAA) 25-23, 19-25, 25-20 and 25-18. CSUSB is now 12-0 overall and 5-0 in the CCAA, a half-game ahead of Sonoma State (4-0).
The Coyotes, one of only five NCAA Division II teams that remain unbeaten, were led by all-American
Jessica Granados with 20 kills, two service aces and three block assists.
Junior
Ashtin Hall continued her fine play with a double-double – 16 kills on .394 hitting with 14 digs and four blocks, one of them solo. Setter
Sara Hoffman, No. 3 in the nation in assists, had 43 against the Broncos.
Middle hitter Vanessa Williams led Cal Poly Pomona with 14 kills on .393 hitting with seven blocks, one of them solo. Cally Young and Jasmine Davis combined for 33 assists. Rafaela Rosa had a match-high 15 digs for the Broncos.
The only set that was not in doubt was the fourth one, as the Coyotes jumped out to an 11-0 lead on a kill by Hall and were up 14-2 before Pomona began to rally and closed the game to 23-16 on a kill by Anne-Marie Hofmans. CSUSB freshman Morgan Carty closed out the match with a kill on an assist by Hoffman.
CSUSB jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the first set but Pomona fought back and climbed back into a tie with the Coyot4es at 15-15 on a Coyote error. Pomona took the lead 19-17 on a block by Williams and Jasmine Davis and a kill by Williams.
It was still tied at 23-all when a Pomona error gave CSUSB a one-point lead and sophomore
Jane Chafeh closed out the set on a kill from an assist by Hoffman.
In game two, Pomona took command building an 11-6 lead on a kill by Jenna Young and expanded the lead to eight points at 17-8 on a block by Williams and Hofmans. CSUSB rallied to get within two at 20-18 on a Pomona error but the Broncos won the set on a kill by Young from an assist by Davis.
The pivotal third game was a nail biter as Pomona moved out to a 9-4 lead but the Coyotes caught them at 11-11 on a kill by Hall from an assist by
Meghan Haas. It was tied again at 20-all but an attack error on Pomona and a block by
Sara Rice and Granados put CSUSB up 22-20. A Granados kill, a service ace by Hoffman and a kill by Hall gave the Coyotes game three and a 2-1 edge in the match.
Cal Poly Pomona, a good blocking team had 13 total team blocks to 8.5 for CSUSB. Allie Newman and Hofmans each had four block assists. Rice had five block assists to lead CSUSB.
The Coyotes hit .207 for the match 100 points below their season average while the Broncos hit .124. CSUSB had 14 service errors to just six for Pomona.
CSUSB will head to La Jolla on Friday to play No. 16 UC San Diego at 7 p.m.
