TURLOCK, Calif. -- Cal Poly Humboldt went the distance with Stanislaus State on Friday night at Fitzpatrick Arena, holding off the Warriors in a five-set battle to leave the valley with a 3-2 victory (25-21, 20-25, 25-19, 23-25, 15-11). Awelina Fakalata recorded her fourth double-double of the season with 20 kills and a season-high 22 digs. Kyra Slavik notched her second double-double, recording 43 assists and a season-high 17 digs. 

"Tonight's win was a hard fought match," stated head coach Angela Spoja. "We needed to go to five sets and pull out a win to instill the belief in ourselves. Fakalata and McLaughlin combined for 37 kills, respectively. We had several people in double digits in the dig column. Fakalata had 22, Slavik with 17 and also 43 assists, Barajas with 17, and Patterson with 12. It was a well rounded defensive game."

MATCH SUMMARY
The Lumberjacks fell behind early in the first set, as the Warriors jumped out to a commanding 7-0 lead to start the match. The hot start of Stan State was put on hold when the Jacks crept back into the game due to four Warrior errors and two Ava Spoja kills, making it a three-point deficit for Humboldt (6-9). As the set progressed, Humboldt fought back to tie the match at 17. The Jacks took advantage of the Warrior errors and finished the set off with Avery McIntyre and Lindsey McLaughlin each notching a pair of kills to win 25-21. 

Humboldt's McLaughlin and Graysen Trupp each recorded kills to put the Jacks up 3-1 early in the second set. Stan State responded by scoring nine of the next 11 points and went up 10-5. Three late kills from McLaughlin, Neriah Tualaulelei-Malele, and Kyra Slavik make it a 24-20 game, but the Warriors closed out set two with a 25-20 score to even the match 1-1. 

Stan State grabbed the first point of set three, but then Warrior attack errors and a service ace from Aurora Meneghetti gave the Jacks early momentum and a 5-1 lead. Humboldt didn't surrender the lead for the rest of the set, as they cruised to a 25-19 set three win. 

Set four was tied 8-8 before a huge Stanislaus run made it a 20-12 advantage for the Warriors. With a slimmer of hope to come back, the Jacks scored nine of the next 11 points to make it a one-point match. An Awelina Fakalata kill made it 22-23, but the Warriors grabbed two of the final three points to take set four 25-23 and force a set five on their home court. 

In a race to 15 points, the Kyra Slavik and Awelina Fakalata connection became a force for the Stanislaus defense. Fakalata had eight kills in the fifth set alone, leading the Jacks to a 15-11 five-set victory to start their road trip. 

NOTABLE STATS

• Awelina Fakalata posted her fourth double-double of the season, recording 20 kills (.333 hitting percentage) and a season high 22 digs
• Kyra Slavik notched her second double-double of the season with 43 assists and a season-high 17 digs
• Mina Barajas had 17 digs
• Kaitlyn Patterson tallied a season high 12 digs
• Lindsey McLaughlin had 15 kills, which tied her season-high
• Avery McIntyre posted 11 kills on 20 attempts, led the team with a .450 hitting percentage

RECORDS
Cal Poly Humboldt (4-7, 1-2 CCAA)
Stanislaus State (5-6, 0-3 CCAA)

UP NEXT
Tomorrow, the Jacks will take on NorCal rival Chico State (3-4, 0-3 CCAA) at Art Acker Gymnasium. First serve is set for 5 PM. On Friday, Chico State lost to Sonoma State in four sets. All games can be streamed on the CCAA Network. For more information on Cal Poly Humboldt Volleyball, please visit humboldtathletics.com and follow us on all social media platforms.