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Cal Poly Pomona 3, Chico State 2

• Scores: 21-25, 25-15, 25-14, 19-25, 12-15
• Kills: Ellie Larronde (15); Lindsay Quigley (12); Kristyn Casalino (11)
• Digs: Ellie Larronde (13); Olivia Mediano (21)
• Assists: Torey Thompson (51).

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On a raucous night in Acker Gym, the Chico State women’s volleyball team took a two sets to one lead against the Cal Poly Pomona Broncos, yet allowed the visitors to climb all the way back to steal the match. The Wildcats fell 21-25, 25-15, 25-14, 19-25, and 12-15. The loss drops the ‘Cats to 8-9 overall and 6-7 in California Collegiate Athletic Association competition.

The Broncos took the first set by four in a see-saw affair, pulling away at the end. However, that was before the Wildcats got rolling.

The second and third sets ended with the ‘Cats winning by solid margins of 10 and nine respectively. Many of Chico State’s 10 service aces came during those two sets. The ‘Cats even started the third set on a 6-0 run before the Broncos got on the scoreboard.

A battle of a fourth set saw the highlight of the night as junior outside hitter Shannon Boling unloaded on a Torey Thompson set for one of her eight kills, this one hitting a Bronco defensive player squarely in the face to get the crowd on its feet. Cal Poly Pomona was able to recover and take the set, forcing a decisive final frame.

In a fifth set that saw mini spurts of points by both by squads, Cal Poly Pomona had an extra one for the end, enabling them to escape with the victory.

Chico State had four players in double digit kills, while Cal Poly Pomona had one. Ellie Larronde had a game-high 15 kills along with 13 digs. Middle hitters Lindsay Quigley and Kristyn Casalino had 12 and 11 kills respectively. According to first year assistant coach David Irving, the pair had 17 kills on the Wildcat’s go to play known as the “slide”. First year Olivia Mediano had a stellar outing with 11 kills, 7 service aces, and a team high 21 digs.

“Olivia stayed aggressive with her swings and followed our game plan,” said Tommy Gott, a sixth-year assistant coach.

Thompson delivered a match-high 51 assists on the night and also racked up three aces and 11 digs.

“Our skills did not break down, we played really well in all aspects of the game. In certain parts we didn’t keep our aggressiveness the entire time and I thought we gave them some easy balls. Pomona’s a good team and they capitalized on those easy balls,” said Gott following the match.

Chico State takes to the road next weekend against CSU-Monterey Bay on Oct. 24 and CSU-East Bay on Oct. 25, two teams the ‘Cats have already bested this season.

Nick Reddy can be reached at [email protected] or @NickISReddy on Twitter.