ARCATA — It took three sets for Humboldt State to establish an attack Friday, and by that time, it was too late to overcome a two-set deficit on the way to a 25-11, 25-16, 22-25, 25-21 loss to Chico State. The defeat keeps HSU winless on the season at 0-7 overall and 0-3 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association volleyball standings.

In the opening set, Chico State rolled to 12 straight points, grabbing a 15-3 advantage and never letting the Lumberjacks back into the battle.

The second set featured several runs by the Wildcats, though the Jacks did hold a four-point lead midway through the contest. Trailing 13-9, Chico State scored nine of the next 10 points before HSU's Ashley Neale checked the surge with a service ace.

"We had a lot of opportunities to have the set go our way," HSU assistant coach James Kealalio said. "We lost the set, rather than the taking it from us."

Humboldt State bounced back to earn the third set win, employing a variety of lineups. Senior Jo Arzadon and Freshmen Noel Eaton and Neale all contributed service aces that fueled a Lumberjack outburst in the late part of teh set that accounted for the victory.

"We made some substitutions between the second and third sets, and they did well," Kealalio said. "We were more energized in that set, and took advantage of Chico's mistakes."

The fourth and final set was played on even terms until the Wildcats finished with a flourish. Jessica Leek sandwiched a kill between a pair of Lumberjack errors to help her team take the match.

Statistically, six different Lumberjacks tied for team-high with four kills each, but the squad suffered a -.008  combined hitting percentage. Brooke Ferguson paced HSU with 12 digs, and Toni Kroeker had three block assists.

Mackenzie Fahnestock had 13 kills and Molly Ratto added 20 digs to top the Wildcats' stats.

Humboldt State remains on the road, traveling to Turlock to face Cal State Stanislaus on Saturday. Match time is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Chico State def. Humboldt State 25-11,25-16,22-25,25-21  Humboldt State (0-7, 0-3 CCAA) (Kills-aces-blocks) - MATSUBU, Oceana 9-1-1; DROBISH, Allison 5-0-2; FINNEY, Callan 3-0-0; EATON, Noel 3-1-2; MANUEL, Taylor 2-0-1; KROEKER, Toni 2-0-3; ARZADON, Joliann 2-3-1; NEALE, Ashley 1-3-0; Totals 27-8-5.0. (Assists) - ARZADON, Joliann 18. (Dig leaders) - FERGUSON, Brooke 12; ARZADON, Joliann 9  Chico State (7-2, 2-1 CCAA) (Kills-aces-blocks) - FAHNESTOCK, Makenzie 13-1-0; LEEK, Jessica 7-3-1; SHURTZ, Alex 6-0-1; TRIFELETTI, Crystal 5-0-1; VILLAESCUSA, Sable 5-0-0; JOHNSON, Jacqueline 3-5-2; BAUMGARDNER, Kayla 1-0-0; RATTO, Molly 1-0-0; Totals 41-9-3.0. (Assists) - VILLAESCUSA, Sable 29. (Dig leaders) - RATTO, Molly 20; FAHNESTOCK, Makenzie 12; VILLAESCUSA, Sable 8  Site: Chico, Calif. (Acker Gymnasium)
Date: Sep 17, 2010   Attend: 237   Time: 1:45