ARCATA, Calif. – After playing its first 10 matches on the road, Humboldt State volleyball finally gets to stay home for CCAA matches against Stanislaus State (Fri., 7 p.m.) and Chico State (Sat., 7 p.m.) in Lumberjack Arena.
 
"We are very excited to be home. It's only been three weeks but it feels like we have been on the road a couple of months," said HSU volleyball coach Kelly Wood. "We are super ready, super fired up to be playing at home this weekend."
 
Stanislaus (5-5 overall) and Chico (8-3 overall) are both 2-0 in CCAA action, with each defeating Cal State East Bay and Cal State Monterey Bay last week in 3-0 sweeps. The Lumberjacks (6-4 overall, 1-1 CCAA) defeated Cal Poly Pomona but lost to Cal State San Bernardino last week.
 
"Going down to Southern California and going 1-1 on the road against two strong teams is a good way to start the conference," Wood said. "The Pomona match was probably the best match that we have played in the areas that we have been talking about that are necessary for us to be successful.  Our defense was good, our serve-receive was very good, and we remained consistent."
 
The Lumberjacks did not fare as well the next night.
 
"Unfortunately, we did not have our best match against San Bernardino," Wood said. "We passed very well, which is always an emphasis we are putting on the girls. But we were struggling to find the hitters, the set location was inconsistent and our transition offense wasn't there."
 
Stanislaus State is led by two seniors: Blair Ehrlich (5-10 outside hitter) and Taylor Massengale (6-2 middle blocker), who have combined for more than 200 kills.
 
"Stanislaus plays hard," Wood said. "They are ball-control players. They are talented. They don't make mistakes. They set everybody. And they have experience with many upperclassmen. It will be a battle of veterans. I expect a lot of long, hard-fought rallies against them."
 
Chico State has won three matches in a row, and the Wildcats have three players dominating at the net: senior Olivia Mediano (3.44 kills per set), freshman Camryn Rocha (3.14 kills per set) and freshman Kim Wright (0.72 blocks per set).
 
"We're looking forward to a tough weekend," Wood said. "We have two very good teams that we are up against. They are similar teams, which is nice to have that back to back. Like us, they are smaller teams that rely on ball control. It should be some exciting volleyball this weekend."