The Matadors look to build off their upset win against UC Davis when they take on Cal State Bakersfield tonight at the Icardo Center in a non-conference matchup.
CSUN (10-16, 3-8 Big West) is coming off an impressive come-from-behind victory against the Aggies this weekend, in which freshman opposite hitter Natalie Allen had a match-high 19 kills.
“It’s real nice to have Natalie Allen back hitting so well,” Matador head coach Jeff Stork said. “That’s the type of production we need from one or two of our players, and tonight we got it from her.”
The two things the Matadors will try to avoid in tonight’s game are slow starts and costly errors. In their last five road games the Matadors have lost the first set, totalling 201 errors.
Northridge is being outscored in the first set of road games 125-84.
“We need to play error free at a high level,” Stork said.
CSUN won the earlier matchup this season against Cal State Bakersfield (0-23) three sets to one. Senior middle blocker Lynda Morales led the Matadors with 15 kills and six blocks. Allen had 13 kills and 10 digs.
Junior outside hitter Lindy DeGeare led the Roadrunners with 16 kills and senior outside hitter Lindsay Toone led with 13 digs.
This could be the game that gets CSUN back on track on the road. Riding a five-game road losing streak, the Matadors’ four of the six remaining games are on the road, which could be a big confidence boost for the team if they win.
Cal State Bakersfield, whose last game was 18 days ago, is still winless on the season, their worst in four years. Last season, the Roadrunners went 14-17 and the season before that they were 18-15.
The Roadrunners’ bad record can be attributed to the amount of injuries they have sustained. Junior middle blocker Alysia Baker missed two weeks with a dislocated finger and junior outside hitter Brookey Holmes missed a month with an ankle injury. Both Baker and Holmes returned to the Roadrunners’ lineup for the first time since their injuries Oct. 20.
Bakersfield is hitting .137 for the season compared to CSUN’s .193. DeGeare leads the Roadrunners with 214 kills, averaging 3.06 kills per set. Junior setter Danielle Gong leads the Roadrunners with 461 assists and freshman middle blocker Chelcy Motes leads the team with 53 blocks.
Allen leads the Matadors with 296 kills and averages 2.99 kills per set. Junior setter Sam Orlandini leads the Matadors with 819 assists and Morales leads CSUN with 100 blocks.
Cal State Bakersfield has won three out of the last five games against CSUN.
The Matadors resume conference play Friday when they take on UC Riverside on the road.
