BAKERSFIELD, Calif. ? Led by junior defensive specialist Kayla Williamson's (Stockdale HS) six aces, the CSUB volleyball team used a strong effort from the service line to sweep visiting UT?Pan American 25-18, 26-24, 25-14 Friday afternoon at the Icardo Center.
CSUB improved to 14-13 overall with the win. The Roadrunners need three wins in their final six matches to insure the first winning season for any sport in the NCAA Division I era of Roadrunner Athletics.
Williamson, who entered the week ranked No. 19 nationally at 0.5 aces per set, raised her average by totaling more than half of CSUB's 11 aces Friday. As a team, the Roadrunners ranked sixth nationally at 2.06 aces per set before lifting that average against the Broncs.
“I thought we served well again today, not just in terms of aces, but in terms of serving tough consistently,” said CSUB Head Coach John Price. “We kept them out of system a lot during the match and that made it difficult for them to get kills.”
UTPA had just 27 kills and hit only .141 for the match. They never hit better than .162 in any set. CSUB, meanwhile, hit a solid .303, including .414 in breaking open a close third set to put the match away.
Freshman outside hitter Linday DeGeare (Stockdale HS) led all attackers with 12 kills for the Roadrunners. She came up huge with the 'Runners on the brink in the second set. CSUB trailed 24-21 before DeGeare registered four consecutive kills to put the 'Runners back on top. A UTPA error on the final swing gave CSUB the set.
CSUB gave up the first point but then led for the duration to take the first set. After pulling set two out of the fire, the 'Runners took control in the third by using a 9-0 run to turn a 9-9 tie into an 18-9 lead that would not be threatened.
In addition to DeGeare, senior middle blocker Rosemary Stribling (West HS) was the only other player to reach double figures, finishing with 10 kills. Alysia Baker (Vista/Tri-City Christian HS) and Sarah Warner (Tehachapi HS) added nine kills apiece.
Kellie Phillips and Chelsea Blakely led UTPA (6-15 overall) with six kills each. Rebecca Toddy chipped in a match-high 16 digs.
CSUB will play its final home match Saturday when it hosts UTPA at 1 p.m. It will be the final home match for seniors Mystie McNaughton, Rosemary Stribling, Sarah Warner and Sarah Norman.
