After a tough loss against Sonoma State, the Chico State Volleyball team came out with intensity against the UC San Diego Tritons and closed the game in three sets Nov. 4.

Despite the many errors, first-year outside hitter Camryn Rocha and junior outside hitter Olivia Mediano dominated the first set with a combined eight kills and an ace from Rocha, ending the first set 25-21.

The Tritons started the second set with the lead until the Wildcats were able to recover and tie the set at 17. The set extended into extra matches which gave the team an opportunity to come back. Junior defensive specialist Shannon Cotton closed the set with an ace, giving Chico a 32-30 win.

Rocha came out strong in the third set by scoring two aces. The Wildcats made fewer errors in the final set. A block by senior middle hitter Ashton Kershner and junior outside hitter Anna Baytosh ended the third set 25-19.

The success of the team early on in the game elevated their playing and made it easy to shake off the previous loss, according to Anna Baytosh.

“San Diego is very talented and we knew going into the match that we had to play fast and clean,” Baytosh said. “We focused on a relentless defensive mentality which pulled us together as a team.”

Chico State returns to the court against Cal State San Marcos Nov. 5 in their final home game of the season.

Key Players:

Olivia Mediano

• 15 kills
• 7 digs

Kim Wright

• 11 kills

Camryn Rocha

• 4 kills
• 4 aces
• 3 digs

Makayla Hopkins can be reached at [email protected] or @_MakaylaHopkins on Twitter.