Volleyball suffers first loss of season to SFSU, 3-2

Seawolves lose perfect season in five set nail-biter, defeat Humboldt 3-0, CSUMB 3-1

After serving up a perfect 11-0 season, the No. 13 ranked Sonoma State Women’s Volleyball team faced their first loss against San Francisco State University and ended the weekend with a 13-1 record.

The Seawolves started off the week with a 3-0 win against the Humboldt State Lumberjacks on Wednesday, 25-8, 25-14, 25-14. Led by three service aces from senior Lindsay Brown (totaling five in the game), Sonoma State took the early lead in the first set.

With 12 kills and only two errors in 28 attacks, the girls reached a 19-3 lead before ending the round at 25-8. SSU kept the momentum up through the next two sets, dominating the Lumberjacks with 12 kills from senior Sarah Illingsworth and 10 from Ali Walker.

With 17 digs, sophomore Taylor Krenwinkel led the team, and Brown would set a season high 40 assists in a three set game. Humboldt State would be held to just 18 kills the entire match.

“Someone has to be more physical to beat us,” said head coach Bear Grassl.

The Seawolves won both sets 25-14 to keep an undefeated season at 11-0, while the Lumberjacks maintained a 5-6 (1-2 CCAA) record.

However, the team’s winning streak would come to an abrupt halt when they faced the SFSU Gators on Friday, losing 3-2 (24-26, 26-28, 25-22, 25-15, 13-15).

“They’re good defensively, they’re good attacking and they have fight and hustle,” said Grassl. “We definitely can beat them, they just happened to be better that night.”

In a five-set game that saw numerous ties and lead changes, the Seawolves were up against a constant battle for the lead.
Sonoma State bounded to an early 7-2 count in the first set; eventually reaching a 21-16 lead after three tie scores and two rebounds by the Gators. Despite having a lead close to the end of the set, SFSU bounced back with four kills from Beth Perkins for a 10-3 run to take over the lead, and the set 26-24.

“We would have liked to respond to pressure better,” said Grassl.

The second set was a close match between the two, with the win coming down to the number of kills produced. Freshman Ally Sather reached a career-high 25 kills on the night while junior Marianne Fox contributed 12. SFSU chased the Seawolves through most of the set until a kill from Kyle Lamet switched the momentum over to allow a 4-1 run to give the Gators the win at 28-24.

The third set saw a lot of back and forth action; neither team held more than a three run lead, tied six times and changed the lead 10 times. SSU held strong and won 25-22 to begin their short-lived comeback.

The Seawolves tied it up in the fourth set, with a much easier win compared to the previous rounds.

Four kills from Fox and Sather and three from Rikki Buckshnis and Brown allowed Sonoma State the early, and ending, lead at 25-15.

Errors plagued the Seawolves in the fifth and final set of the match, as SFSU took advantage of the mistakes to come out of the set, and the game, victorious, 13-15.

“It’s important to not panic because we lost one game, then change everything,” Grassl told the girls after the game. “We’ve been pretty successful, we’re still playing good volleyball.”

Brown had a season high 50 assists in the game, Taylor Krenwinkel had 22 digs, and Illingworth had five blocks.
History was made the next day as Brown made her 3,000th career assist in the second set against CSU Monterey Bay and ended the game with 3,021. Sather supplied a team high 23 kills, with seven from Illingworth and Devynne Johnson apiece and 46 of the team’s 51 assists came from Brown.

In the four-set victory, the Seawolves got off to a good start in a close set with the Otters to win 25-23, with 17 kills, five errors and 38 attacks.

The momentum ended as Sonoma State was unable to beat Monterey Bay in the second set to even the score at 1-1. The Otters produced multiple long run streaks to put them in position to win, 25-18.

The Seawolves then fought back and started out with an astonishing 12 point run in the third set. Four of those points were service aces made by Brown, and led to a 25-19 lead.

“This year’s roster is a lot like last years,” said Grassl. “Most of the starters are returning. We are playing a different style, we’re not as physical as last year.”

An easy victory in the fourth set gave the Seawolves the 3-1 lead to win the game and bounce back from a disheartening loss the previous night. Sonoma State retained the lead through the set and had a five point run to end at 25-17.

“Brown, Krenwinkel and Walker are the backbone of this team,” said Grassl. “They’re the glue that holds us together. About 70 percent of the balls we touch are handled by them.”

According to Grassl, sophomore Keala Peterson, who was injured last week during a block attempt against a competitive Cal State Los Angeles, will likely be able to return to play within the next week or two.

The Seawolves remain ranked at No. 13 with a 12-1 overall record, 4-1 in the CCAA.

They will face Cal Poly Pomona on Fri., Sept. 25 and Cal State San Bernadino on Sat., Sept. 26. The first serve for both games is scheduled for 7 p.m.

These games won’t be pushover wins for the Seawolves. Last year, San Bernadino played in the national championship game and are currently ranked at No. 2, and SSU hasn’t won against Pomona in at least ten years, according to Grassl.

“They’re both very good teams,” he commented on his opponents. “But we’re also prepared.”