Published 2011-09-27T19:45:00Z”/>

Dariush Dias Azmoudeh

The Chico State women’s volleyball team traveled to Southern California this weekend to take on two teams ranked top 10 in the nation and returned home with a split result.

Despite falling to third-ranked Cal State San Bernardino on Friday in three sets, the Wildcats squeezed out a close five-set victory over 10th-ranked UC San Diego on Saturday.

The loss on Friday proved to be tough for the ‘Cats, losing in three straight games to the Coyotes, 25-12, 25-16 and 25-19.

“Friday we played poorly against a good team,” volleyball coach Cody Hein said. “They’re really good, third-ranked team in the country. They really took it to us.”

San Bernardino remains undefeated so far in the season, through 11 games, and is in second place in the conference with a 6-0 record.

Playing against a high-ranked team like San Bernardino caused Chico to play timidly and not to its full potential, ‘Cats senior setter Kristan Music said.

A lack of confidence and the Coyotes’ offense overwhelmed Chico State’s ability to bounce back from plays.

“I felt our connection was off, our hitting was off,” Music said. “We needed to put the ball away.”

The ‘Cats recorded 24 kills, only half of the Coyotes total.

With each kill that San Bernardino made, the more difficult it was for Chico to recover, ‘Cats freshman defensive specialist Lauren Orozco said.

“The game was a shock,” Orozco said. “We didn’t play the way we’re used to. We didn’t play like ourselves

at all.”

Despite winning the first point in the first two sets, the ‘Cats rarely led in the game and gave up a 3-1 lead in the first set by allowing seven straight points.

The hard loss on Friday served to be a lesson for the ‘Cats, who put their abilities to the test on Saturday and came out with a win against San Diego.

“We used the San Bernardino game as a stepping stone and learned a lesson,” Orozco said. “That’s why we played well against San Diego.”

The team learned not to take their opponent’s ranking too strongly, Music said.

“It’s all defined on the court,” Music said.

Both teams fought hard in the first set battling to a 31-29 win by the ‘Cats, which proved to be an important battle for momentum for the rest of the game.

“Early game one, we played together as a group and with emotion,” Hein said. “It was very important to win game one.”

The way the team played in the first set determined the team’s confidence for the rest of the game, Orozco said.

“Winning the first game in a match sets the pace for the team,” Orozco said.

The win allowed the ‘Cats to inch closer to the Tritons for third place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association division. Chico currently sits in fourth with a 4-2 conference record and 9-3 overall, right behind 5-1

San Diego.

The entire match showed to be close with the ‘Cats winning the first two sets and the Tritons taking the third and fourth.

Chico came close to closing the game in the third set, going neck in neck with San Diego. The ‘Cats led at 23-22 but allowed three straight points from San Diego to take the set.

Both offense and defense were in sync for the ‘Cats with junior outside hitter Makenzie Synder blasting 23 kills and Orozco racking up 28 digs on defense.

In the middle of the third set, the ‘Cats held on to an 11-6 lead that helped the team push toward the 15-11 final score in the set to take the game.

“It was a new day,” Hein said. “They were worried playing against a good team on Friday, but on Saturday, they played with heart.”

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<strong>Dariush Dias Azmoudeh can be reached at</strong>

<em>[email protected]</em>