Friday, November 11
Riverside, Calif.
8:30 p.m.
California Baptist University
3
vs
1
Dixie State
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dixie State | 18 | 25 | 14 | 12 | 1 |
| California Baptist | 25 | 22 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Photo by: Jacob Gonzalez
CBU Strengthens Its PacWest Standing
11/11/2016 11:17:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
RIVERSIDE, Calif. – After splitting the first two sets, one side was bound to respond in the third set of Friday's PacWest rivalry match between California Baptist University and Dixie State.
CBU provided the response and it led seamlessly into a four-set win over the Trailblazers, 25-18, 22-25, 25-14, 25-12. The fifth-ranked Lancers in the NCAA Division II West Region improve to 19-6, 14-3 in conference and strengthen its hold on second place in the PacWest given the other results around the conference.
"We have kind of established a rivalry with Dixie State, and we knew it's going to be the two of us at the top," Coach Branden Higa. "Our team respects them a lot. We were ready for a battle and they gave it to us."
Dominican lost in four sets at home to Point Loma to drop to 16-8, 12-4 and a match and a half back from CBU in the conference standings. Fourth-place Hawai'i Pacific was swept on the road at Azusa Pacific to slide to 15-10, 11-5 and Dixie State drops to 15-10, 11-6.
Back in Riverside, CBU's offense put on quite the display, with setter Sydney Kralj pacing the group to a .384 hitting percentage (60 kills, 12 errors on 125 attempts). Kralj logged 49 assists, 13 digs, five kills on seven attacks and three blocks.
"We executed, everyone took care of their jobs and it's a big win for us," Kralj said. "We knew them, we were ready for them. We went in with that mindset and we took care of it."
Meanwhile, Lauren Hackett led the team with 17 kills, six digs and two aces. Jenna Perry and Lauren Marr were both in double-digit kills at 13 and 12, respectively, with respective hitting percentages of .370 (13-3-27) and .367 (12-1-30). Tori Ortman tallied a team-high digs and aces, with 14 and four, respectively.
Middle blocks Jessica Harris (seven kills) and Abbie Gortsema (five kills) combined to hit .611 (12-1-18), as Kralj got everyone involved.
"Getting our middles involved opens things up so much for our pins and spreads our offense out so much, their middles don't know where to go," Kralj said. "Our middles have been working so hard, so they definitely deserve the kills."
CBU took an early lead in set one, 12-3, and did not look back from there. The Lancers maintained their lead in the middle going, 16-13, and then a 6-0 run coming on two Hackett kills helped them carve their way to victory, 25-18.
Dixie State won set two, 25-22, and then looked to take the lead in the match with an 11-8 edge in set three. CBU rebounded and took a 13-11 advantage with a 5-0 run coming on two Marr kills and ace-kill sequence from Hackett.
The Trailblazers tried to stay close, within 16-14, but then the Lancers shifted into another gear and closed out the set on a 9-0 run, thanks to the serving of Kristin McCord (eight digs) and four Hackett kills.
CBU took control early in set three with a 6-0 charge, giving it a 10-4 cushion. Gortsema logged three points in that run, with two blocks and a kill, while Marr added two spikes. The Lancers used a 10-0 rally fueled by three Ortman aces to put Dixie State away for good, down 21-7 in the set.
"In sets three and four, our serving was much more in. We got some servers in rhythm, and we made them play," Higa said.
CBU hosts BYU-Hawaii Saturday at 7 p.m. and then turns right back around to host Hawai'i Pacific for Senior Night Monday at 7 p.m. The regular season comes to a close for the Lancers at Azusa Pacific on Saturday, Nov. 19th at 3 p.m.
CBU provided the response and it led seamlessly into a four-set win over the Trailblazers, 25-18, 22-25, 25-14, 25-12. The fifth-ranked Lancers in the NCAA Division II West Region improve to 19-6, 14-3 in conference and strengthen its hold on second place in the PacWest given the other results around the conference.
"We have kind of established a rivalry with Dixie State, and we knew it's going to be the two of us at the top," Coach Branden Higa. "Our team respects them a lot. We were ready for a battle and they gave it to us."
Dominican lost in four sets at home to Point Loma to drop to 16-8, 12-4 and a match and a half back from CBU in the conference standings. Fourth-place Hawai'i Pacific was swept on the road at Azusa Pacific to slide to 15-10, 11-5 and Dixie State drops to 15-10, 11-6.
Back in Riverside, CBU's offense put on quite the display, with setter Sydney Kralj pacing the group to a .384 hitting percentage (60 kills, 12 errors on 125 attempts). Kralj logged 49 assists, 13 digs, five kills on seven attacks and three blocks.
"We executed, everyone took care of their jobs and it's a big win for us," Kralj said. "We knew them, we were ready for them. We went in with that mindset and we took care of it."
Meanwhile, Lauren Hackett led the team with 17 kills, six digs and two aces. Jenna Perry and Lauren Marr were both in double-digit kills at 13 and 12, respectively, with respective hitting percentages of .370 (13-3-27) and .367 (12-1-30). Tori Ortman tallied a team-high digs and aces, with 14 and four, respectively.
Middle blocks Jessica Harris (seven kills) and Abbie Gortsema (five kills) combined to hit .611 (12-1-18), as Kralj got everyone involved.
"Getting our middles involved opens things up so much for our pins and spreads our offense out so much, their middles don't know where to go," Kralj said. "Our middles have been working so hard, so they definitely deserve the kills."
CBU took an early lead in set one, 12-3, and did not look back from there. The Lancers maintained their lead in the middle going, 16-13, and then a 6-0 run coming on two Hackett kills helped them carve their way to victory, 25-18.
Dixie State won set two, 25-22, and then looked to take the lead in the match with an 11-8 edge in set three. CBU rebounded and took a 13-11 advantage with a 5-0 run coming on two Marr kills and ace-kill sequence from Hackett.
The Trailblazers tried to stay close, within 16-14, but then the Lancers shifted into another gear and closed out the set on a 9-0 run, thanks to the serving of Kristin McCord (eight digs) and four Hackett kills.
CBU took control early in set three with a 6-0 charge, giving it a 10-4 cushion. Gortsema logged three points in that run, with two blocks and a kill, while Marr added two spikes. The Lancers used a 10-0 rally fueled by three Ortman aces to put Dixie State away for good, down 21-7 in the set.
"In sets three and four, our serving was much more in. We got some servers in rhythm, and we made them play," Higa said.
CBU hosts BYU-Hawaii Saturday at 7 p.m. and then turns right back around to host Hawai'i Pacific for Senior Night Monday at 7 p.m. The regular season comes to a close for the Lancers at Azusa Pacific on Saturday, Nov. 19th at 3 p.m.
Team Stats
DX-VB
CBU-VB
Kills
43
60
Errors
20
12
Attempts
122
125
Hitting %
.189
.384
Points
48.0
75.0
Assists
39
55
Aces
2
9
Blocks
3.0
6.0
Game Leaders
Kills
17
Aces
2
Blocks
1
Kills
13
Aces
1
Blocks
0
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
7
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
LIB
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball2023 VB Hype Video
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