Bellingham, Wash - In a rematch from their August 25 match in Ellensburg, the Central Washington University volleyball team squared off with #1 CSU San Bernardino, this time in the NCAA West Regional semifinals. Despite showing excellent resiliency, the Wildcats fell short to the Coyotes 3-1 (17-25, 25-18, 25-23, 25-20) on Friday night.
The resiliency of the Wildcats (23-6) was put on display in the third set against the Coyotes (28-2). The two teams were tied with a game a piece in hand. The situation looked bleak for the Wildcats, as the Coyotes hustled to a 17-5 lead. The Wildcats put together an incredible 17-7 run that pulled the team to within one. The Coyotes managed to squeak past the Wildcats 25-23.
"It was a fun match to watch if you were a fan," head coach Mario Andaya said. "I was proud of the resiliency of our players. We were down early in a couple sets and then they made that comeback in the third set. You cant get down against a team like that and expect to cruise through. We fought and that was a positive thing."
The Wildcat offense was hot to open the match. The team hit .268, sustaining a solid lead throughout. Shelby Mauritson and Makala Swart lead all players with five kills in the first frame. Sarah Joffs added three kills on a .750 hitting percentage.
The Coyotes found their groove offensively in the second set. The Wildcats led 5-3 when the Coyotes used a 9-2 run to extend their lead. The Wildcats used their second timeout of the set while trailing 16-10. From that point, the team went on an 8-4 run that pulled them to within four. The Coyotes would score the final three points they needed to take the set 25-18.
The two teams traded points into the fourth set, but the Coyotes were able to earn a 15-13 lead. The Wildcats used a timeout, but the Coyotes offense maintained pace. They'd take a 20-15 lead, forcing the Wildcats to use their final timeout. The Coyotes closed out the set 25-20, taking the game 3-1.
"When we have time to reflect, we are going to see a lot of good things and make some good memories from them," Andaya said. "The season as a whole was approached with the mindset of one game at a time. We played so many matches. We were preparing every day throughout the GNAC. Out of the six losses we've had, four came from the #1 or #2 team in the country. I'm proud of the run the team made after a rough patch in the middle of the year. Even tonight, they never stopped believing in what they could do."
The Wildcats season comes to a close in the NCAA West Regionals semifinals. The team featured the GNAC Defensive Player of the Year, five first team All-GNAC members, one All-GNAC honorable mention, eight GNAC All-Academic team members and two D2CCA first team members.
