ARCATA — (Sept. 8) Sophomore outside hitter Mallory Briney tallied a career-high 10 blocks and Kristen Kinzer added seven as Humboldt State's defense led the team to a 30-28, 31-29, 21-30, 30-25 win over Cal State Bakersfield in volleyball action Friday in the East Gym.    

The Lumberjacks improve to 5-2 overall and 2-1 in California Collegiate Athletic Association play while the Roadrunners fall to 1-2 on the season and in conference play.    

“We were aggressive and making good, smart plays,” said HSU head coach Sue Woodstra. “When we struggle, its usually because we're backing up and not playing as smart. When each person plays their position and does their job, it becomes less important to have one great player carrying us.”    

In the first game, the Jacks broke open a 6-6 tie, scoring three straight points on Katie Norkunas' serve, and eventually taking a 17-10 lead. The Roadrunners fought back into the game, pulling within a point at 29-28, but an attack error by CSUB ended the game 30-28.    

In the second game, Humboldt fought from behind, using six team blocks to climb back into the game. Three straight blocks by Briney and Kinzer, broken up only by a kill and ball handing error by the Roadrunners, brought the Jacks to a one point deficit late in the game, while a pair of kills by Norkunas and a service error by Bakersfield gave the HSU the win.    

The Lumberjacks stumbled in the third game, hitting a .114 percentage, while the Roadrunners hit .326 for the game.    

In the fourth, however, Humboldt broke a 17-17 tie on a kill by Norkunas and three straight attacking errors by the Roadrunners to take a 21-17 lead. Humboldt held the lead for the remainder of the game, claiming the 30-25 win on a service error by Bakersfield.   

 “(Coach) John Price has a very good program, and they're gearing up to play Division I next year,” said Woodstra. “For us to win is significant. We love being in this conference, and we're eager to get CCAA wins.”    

Norkunas finished with a team-high 15 kills while Lynsey Admas and Olivia Solomon added 10 apiece. Maya Domoto had 33 digs for the Jacks.    

Sarah Warner led Bakersfield with 20 kills while Kayla Williamson recorded 35 digs.   

“Our energy level was different (than last week),” said Woodstra. “We had been playing hesitant, waiting for mistakes to happen. Tonight, we pushed our opponent into doing what we wanted to do.”    

Humboldt returns to the court Saturday, facing off against CCAA opponent Cal State Los Angeles. First serve in the East Gym is set for 7 p.m.

Humboldt State def. CS Bakersfield 30-28,31-29,21-30,30-25

CS Bakersfield (1-2, 1-2 CCAA) (Kills-aces-blocks) - WARNER, Sarah 20-1-2; KREGER, Kerianne 12-2-2; STRIBLING, Rosemary 12-2-3; MCWHORTER, Kate 11-0-1; MYERS, Melissa 4-0-3; PIVA, Nicole 3-0-1; BALDWIN, Erica 1-2-0; CURTIS, Gabrielle 1-0-0; WILLIAMSON, Kayla 0-4-0; Totals 64-11-7.0. (Assists) - BALDWIN, Erica 35; LOPEZ, Yesenia 17. (Dig leaders) - WILLIAMSON, Kayla 35; BALDWIN, Erica 14; KREGER, Kerianne 8

Humboldt State (5-2, 2-1 CCAA) (Kills-aces-blocks) - NORKUNAS, Katie 15-3-0; ADAMS, Lynsey 10-0-1; SOLOMON, Olivia 10-1-1; KINZER, Kristen 7-0-7; WELLS, Danielle 5-1-1; BRINEY, Mallory 5-0-10; DOMOTO, Maya 1-0-0; LEE, Courtney 0-1-0; BERNDT, Megahn 0-0-2; Totals 53-6-12.0. (Assists) - SHANNON, Liz 24; JUCKSCH, Ashley 19. (Dig leaders) - DOMOTO, Maya 33; NORKUNAS, Katie 15; SOLOMON, Olivia 12; JUCKSCH, Ashley 9; SHANNON, Liz 8

Site: Arcata, Calif. (East Gym)
Date: Sep 08, 2006   Attend: 250   Time: 2:10
Referees: Jan Filip, Dwanye Jackson