FRESNO, Calif.--The Bakersfield volleyball team split a pair of matches on Saturday at the Fresno State Classic. 

Match 1-Fresno State 3, Bakersfield 0

The 'Runners were plagued by poor hitting throughout as Bakersfield hit .028 (28-25-109) for the match and were at a negative number in the third and final set. In comparison, the Bulldogs hit .300 for the match, making only nine hitting errors in 100 chances (39-9-100).

Danika Youngblood (Jr., Salt Lake City, Utah, Western Nebraska CC) and Kelsee Sawyer (So., Temecula, Calif., Great Oak HS) each posted six kills for the 'Runners. Fernanda Gonçalves (Sr., Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Western Nebraska C.C.) charted 23 assists. Mariah Alvidrez (R-Jr., Bakersfield, Calif., Liberty HS) posted 15 digs.

Match 2-Bakersfield 3, Belmont 0

Set one between the Roadrunners and the Bruins featured 14 ties. With the set knotted up at 18, Bakersfield used a 7-2 spurt to earn the first set victory 25-20. Set two was evenly matched once again. At 21-21, the 'Runners scored the next two points, but Belmont would tie it up at 23.

A Molly O'Hagan (Jr., Tonganoxie, Kan., Tonganoxie HS) kill made it 24-23. The Bruins called timeout and tied it up for the 10th time. O'Hagan again broke the tie with a kill at 25-24. CSUB earned the set with a Lisa Bartsch (Sr., Wuppertal, Germany, Augusta State) ace for a 26-24 victory.

Tied early on in the third set, the Roadrunners would use a balanced attack and win the set 25-21 and sweep the match. O'Hagan paced the offense with 10 kills. She also added three blocks. Julia Bowen (Sr., Ottawa, Ontario, Wilfrid Laurier Univ.) had eight kills and five blocks. Gonçalves charted 20 assists while Bartsch dished out 19 assists. Alvidrez recorded 16 digs.

Bowen was named to the All-Tournament team. She hit .500 for the meet (12-3-18), posted 10 blocks and added one assist.

"This was a good response (against Belmont)," said Bakersfield head coach Jolene Shepardson. "We came out more competitive as a whole. Belmont is a solid team and put us under pressure and we held strong together as a team. Everyone contributed offensively and defensively."

The Roadrunners (6-4) finish 1-2 at the tournament. Bakersfield travels to Long Beach State for two matches next Friday before heading to UC Davis for a single match at 2 p.m. on Sunday.

~www.GoRunners.com~