CHADRON, Neb. – Despite having two match points in the third set, Chadron State volleyball fell victim to a comeback from Adams State, with the Grizzlies winning 23-25, 14-25, 28-26, 25-17, 15-11 in a Friday night marathon in the Chicoine Center.
The Eagles (7-8, 1-4 RMAC) have now lost in five sets in all four of their home matches so far this season – while four of their five conference matches, home or away, have gone the full five sets. Adams State (9-8, 3-2 RMAC) improved to 3-2 this season in five-set matches.
Mataya Ward tied a career-high with 21 kills while
Avery Lacy tied a career-high with 32 digs in the effort for Chadron State.
Sarah Meservey, who tied a school record with 13 blocks last time out, hit double-digits again with 10 blocks and set a new season-high with three solo swats.
Gibson Beckler also played a well-rounded game, recording 17 kills and 12 digs along with a season-high five blocks. Chadron State recorded 16 blocks as a team, CSC's second-most of the season behind last Thursday's 19 against South Dakota Mines.
Adams State separated itself on the service line, recording nine aces while CSC only had one. Chadron State recorded a side-out percentage of over 60 percent in each of the first two sets they prevailed in, but were under 50 percent in each of the next three.
The Grizzlies had a boom-or-bust-style offense, finishing with more kills (67-58) than the Eagles but also significantly more errors (36-21) to hit .148 while CSC hit .209. The Grizzlies weathered hitting 22 kills against 20 errors through the first two sets, going on to hit .215 or better in sets three, four and five.
Beyond Ward's 21 and Beckler's 17, no CSC player had more than five kills. Ward's 21 kills match her output from a previous five-set win over Western Colorado this season, and it was also the Belle Fourche, South Dakota junior's third-highest hitting percentage of the season at .333.
Lacy's 32 digs match a previous career-high set last season in a five-setter at Black Hills State. Beckler, with 12, was the only other Eagle in double digits.
Chadron State leapt out to a 12-5 lead on a landmark point that lasted 45 seconds and featured multiple diving saves by the Eagles before a block by
Sydney Strode and
Jillian Donovan. Adams State fought back to within one point twice – once at 18-17 and once after saving three set points to trim the CSC lead to 24-23 – but a
Kally Kirkwood kill ended the set.
The second set was the only one of the five to be in little doubt. Despite Adams State jumping ahead 3-0, Chadron State tied it at 3-3 and later turned the set on its head by flipping a 6-4 deficit into a 22-10 lead with an 18-4 scoring run. Chadron State had 24 kills and 10 blocks through two sets.
Despite the eventual 25-14 margin of victory, Adams State saved two set points in the second set after saving three in the first set, a preview of ASU's resolve and fight that would show up in later sets.
The third set featured eight ties and seven lead changes. The Eagles lead 4-0, only to fall behind 5-4, and had the largest lead of the set at five points (13-8). Adams State remained step-for-step throughout the entire set, however, with back-to-back kills by Rowan Tribelhorn tying the third set at 23-23.
The Eagles took leads of 24-23 and 26-25, only for the Grizzlies to save match point each time. After tying it 26-26, a well-timed ace followed by a kill gave ASU the third set at 28-26.
The fourth and fifth sets were even closer as the two teams tied 12 times in the fourth set alone. No team had a lead bigger than two points at any point until Adams State suddenly reeled off a run of eight straight points to turn a 17-17 tie into a 25-17 fourth-set win.
In the decisive fifth set, the visitors hit .219 while CSC hit .154. Chadron State led 8-6 and 11-10, but again, the Grizzlies ended the set with a flourish, using a 5-0 run to complete the comeback at 15-11.
Chadron State is back in action Saturday night, facing off against New Mexico Highlands (2-13, 0-5). The Cowgirls lost to Regis in five sets on Friday.
