Colorado State came back to defeat San Jose State 3-2 (25-18, 21-25, 21-25, 25-12, 15-11) Saturday in Moby Arena.
It was a great day for outside hitter Riley Simpson, who returned from injury in October. She finished the day with 15 kills and three blocks. Since stepping back onto the court, she has contributed a ton and made her case for getting the starting job.
“(Simpson’s) starting to figure out how to play volleyball again at a very high level,” head coach Emily Kohan said. “And that was one of her best performances, especially in the fifth set. But (it was a) really great performance in the fifth set when it really mattered.”
Simpson was a key player in Saturday’s match that went the distance, and she is acclimating to game action fairly well.
“I kinda started off slow, like I had to start doing rehab stuff pretty early — like right after my surgery in June — and then I did a lot of conditioning work — outside of volleyball — to get acclimated for these five-set matches,” Simpson said. “And then getting back in, I was taking more swings each week, so I was on a swing count.”
Coming into the match, the Rams were on a five-game win streak, which was almost ended after the Spartans took a 2-1 lead. The Rams hadn’t played a fifth set since Sept. 25’s loss against Wyoming; however, they did expect Saturday to be a fight.
“San Jose has gone five (sets) with a lot of good teams; they took Utah State to five, San Diego State to five and I think Boise State to five,” Kohan said. “And so, that was on the scouting report. They love to play hard defense, and they will not go away. So, that wasn’t a complete surprise to us. And again, I was proud that we responded in that fourth set and then the fifth set.”
Being prepared for this certainly helped the team today and reflects on their fourth set bounce back. Another player that kept the ship afloat today was middle blocker Eve Wilson, totaling 14 kills and five blocks.
“Our mindset after the second set (SJS’s first won set) was that we have to respect the team that we play, and make sure that no matter how they’re doing, if they’re making mistakes or not, that doesn’t change how we play,” Wilson said. “And we finally made that switch in the fourth set.”
A five-set match may have been exactly what the Rams needed heading into their matchup against Utah State, though. The Aggies are currently undefeated in conference play and swept the Rams earlier this season.
“We kind of needed a five-set (game), like we haven’t played one (yet),” Wilson said. “It’s good to just get ready for the postseason. I mean, we have Utah State next week, so I’m hoping that it maybe goes to five or something, so it’s a good test for us.”
The Rams learned a lot from their match against the Spartans. Crucial timing as they head into the Mountain West Tournament on Nov. 26. The lineup is taking shape, and the players are finding their roles.
Middle blocker Brenna Rowland came off the bench, supporting the Rams to their comeback win. Rowland, who has been a starter, is still finding ways to contribute.
“I thought Brenna did a great job coming off the bench and adding energy and getting some really timely kills,” Kohan said. “That’s a tough job coming off the bench cold after three sets, but she did a really nice job.”
CSU travels Nov. 6 to Logan, Utah to face the MW No. 1 Aggies.
“I hope we play with a little chip on our shoulder; we got something to prove,” Kohan said. “We’re kind of trying to get a little bit of redemption from a really poor performance. It’s got to be on the road, but remember the theme of we’ve got to be the best on the road because the Mountain West tournament is also on the road.”
Reach Aron Medrano at sports@collegian.com or on Twitter @AronMedrano27.
