CHICO, Calif. - #7 California State University San Bernardino women's volleyball secured a share of the CCAA Regular Season Championship with a 3-1 victory over Chico State on Saturday afternoon at Art Acker Gymnasium. Set scores were 25-20, 21-25, 25-17, and 25-15.
With the win, the Coyotes finish the regular season at 23-2 overall and 12-1 in CCAA play. CSUSB shares the conference championship with Fresno Pacific, which lost to Cal Poly Pomona on Saturday. It is the 18th regular season title in program history.
The opening set featured seven ties and three lead changes. With the score even at 10-10, CSUSB moved ahead on consecutive kills by senior M'Kera Drake, junior Sarai Ross, and freshman Lilly Hartman.
Chico State pulled within two at 15-13 before the Coyotes scored four straight points behind the serve of Haedyn Heyes. The stretch included an ace, a kill by Cali Tirado, and a block from Drake and junior Kisa Sagiao. Ross later ended the set with her fourth kill.
CSUSB hit .316 with 17 kills in the first set. Senior Kacie Pedersen led the Coyotes with five kills, while Ross added four.
Neither team led by more than three points through the first 36 rallies of the second set. Chico State broke a 16-16 tie with two straight points and later built a 20-17 advantage.
The Coyotes pulled within one at 22-21 on a Drake kill, but Chico State scored the final three points to even the match. The Wildcats recorded 18 kills and hit .244 in the set, while holding CSUSB to .186.
CSUSB broke an 8-8 tie in the third set with kills by Drake and Pedersen, followed by another Pedersen kill that made it 11-8. The Coyotes later used a 4-0 run to extend their lead to 18-11, with junior McKenna Edwards contributing an ace and Legates adding a kill and a block.
CSUSB hit .278 in the third set and held Chico State to .129. Pedersen recorded seven of the Coyotes' 16 kills.
The Coyotes scored six of the first seven points in the fourth set. Ross had three kills during the opening stretch, while sophomore libero Saniyah Sobers added a service ace.
CSUSB extended its lead to 17-8 and remained in control the rest of the way. The Coyotes posted their best hitting percentage of the match in the final set, recording 17 kills and two errors on 34 attempts for a .441 mark. Ross led the way with seven kills.
CSUSB finished with 63 kills and a .298 hitting percentage while holding Chico State to .175. The Coyotes also held advantages in total blocks, 11-7, and service aces, 7-4.
Ross led CSUSB with 18 kills on .417 hitting, while Pedersen finished with 17 kills, 10 digs, and two solo blocks. Drake recorded 10 kills on .529 hitting, and senior Allison Legates added nine kills on .562 hitting and six blocks. Edwards totaled 38 assists, 10 digs, and two aces, while Sobers had a team-high 15 digs.
The Coyotes will host Cal State San Marcos for a CCAA Tournament first-round match Tuesday at Kim Cherniss Court at Coussoulis Arena. First serve is slated for 5 p.m.
