California Baptist University
1-2,0-0WAC
CSUN
0-3,0-0Big West
Thrilling Second Set Propels CBU to its First Win of 2023
8/26/2023 11:49:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
SAN JOSE--- In the final match of the Santa Clara Tournament, the California Baptist University women's volleyball team got themselves into the win category with a 3-1 victory over Cal State Northridge.
The Lancers take the final match of the tournament 3-1 over the Matadors for win # 1⃣ of the year!! 👏#LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/CuoYmwGbnf
— cbuvolleyball (@CBU_volleyball) August 26, 2023
HOW IT HAPPENED:
After dropping the previous two matches by slim margins, CBU came out determined against the Matadors and took the opening set 25-19. Leah Pease started the Lancers in the set with a pair of aces to take the early lead. A little over halfway through the set, Catherine Krieger registered her 1,000th career kill with a swing on the right side. Krieger, a graduate transfer from Sam Houston, achieved the milestone in her third game with CBU. Four Lancers would record at least three kills in the frame to take the 1-0 lead on CSUN.
🏐𝟣𝒦 𝒞𝓁𝓊𝒷🏐
— cbuvolleyball (@CBU_volleyball) August 26, 2023
Cat crushes home her 1,000th career kill in her third game as a Lancer. Congratulations on the impressive milestone!!#LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/bSRPjtBV0l
The second set of the match was a high-flying and tremendously entertaining period, with the scores of the two teams totaling 64. CBU found themselves down early in the set and battled back to send the set to overtime. From there, the Lancers faced elimination four times and held it off each time and claimed the set 33-31. Chandler Gorman had two key kills late in the set and recorded her lone service ace of the match to seal the victory for CBU.
The third set also went overtime, but the Matadors were able to come away victorious this time around. In the fourth, and what proved to be the final set, the Lancers and Matadors went back and forth until the midway point when CBU turned on the heat and closed the set on a 10-1 run to seal the victory.
Head Coach Branden Higa was proud of his team for coming out with determination in the win.
"(Friday) was tough because we played at a very high level for a lot of the day, and we were in both matches. We needed to be more consistent, and the team was determined to address that today. We were tested, and the team did a nice job of putting it all together."
STATISTICAL NOTABLES:
Krieger led the Lancers in kills with a season-high 18 on a .368 attack percentage and chipped in on the defensive end with eight digs. Freshman Opposite Hitter Nicole Mauser continued to impress with 12 kills on a .462 attack percentage to amplify her impressive freshman campaign thus far. Michalina Rola, who leads all Lancers in kills to start 2023, made it three straight double-doubles with 15 kills and 15 digs. Rola has recorded 43 kills and 42 digs to begin the season.
NEXT:
The Lancers will hit the road again with a road trip to Saint Paul, Minnesota, to compete in the Saint Thomas Tournament. CBU will face Milwaukee, Saint Thomas, and Montana State in the tournament, with Milwaukee being the opener on Friday, September 1st, at 9 A.M.
