Volleyball Clinches Most Wins of Division I Era with Win over UTRGV

BEAUMONT, Tex. — The Chicago State volleyball team (13-7, 5-3 WAC) cruised to a win against the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros, 3-1, in overall sets. The Cougars, by set, won 25-22, 25-23, 25-21 in sets two through four after dropping the first, 25-16.

The win gives the Cougars their most wins since 1987, with 13. Since the program's Division I era began in 1988, it's the most wins for Chicago State volleyball in Division I history.

Yanlis Feliz also struck in 30 kills, the most of her CSU career, extending her streak of matches with 10+ kills to 29.

In the first set, both teams first committed errors that led to a 1-1 tie. However, the Vaqueros bounced back with a 6-2 scoring run that had the Cougars trailing 6-3 in an impressive early lead for UTRGV.

The Vaqueros rode this early momentum all the way, as they cruised to a set win at 25-16, edging the Cougars to take 1-0 lead in overall sets.

To start off the second half, the Cougars, looking to bounce back after a first set loss, jumped to an early 2-0 lead with a ferocious kill by Berenice Almeyda and an attack error from the Vaqueros.

UTRGV then answered back with a kill of their own courtesy of Luis Silva. Nonetheless, Chicago State answered back with an outstanding 8-1 scoring run featuring three service aces by Jaclyn Inclan, two stunning kills by Feliz and three errors by the Vaqueros which had the Cougars up 10-1 in a commanding lead.

The Cougars, much like UTRGV in the first set, rode this very early momentum all the way to a set win at 25-22, even though the Vaqueros came close, Chicago State sealed the win with a kill by Feliz.

Heading into the third set tied at 1-1 in overall sets, the Vaqueros jumped out to an early 4-0 lead off of two service aces, an attack error by the Cougars, and a kill by Silva.

Nevertheless, Chicago State bounced back with an 8-4 run courtesy of ferocious kills by Mesalina Severino, Feliz, Jones and Inclan, which tied up the set at 8-8.

This trend of play continued up to a 23-23 tie, which produced a thrilling ending.

The Cougars ultimately pulled away with the win at 25-23 with a spectacular kill each by Severino and Almeyda, which meant they now led 2-1 in overall sets heading into the fourth set looking to seal the match.

In the fourth and final set of the match, the frame began with a tie at 1-1 as the Vaqueros committed an attack error yet bounced back with a kill by Maria Rodrigues.

The match remained tightly knit up until a 6-5 lead for the Cougars in which they finally established their superiority and went on a 10-4 lead which included kills by Feliz, Severino, and Almeyda which had the Cougars up with an outstanding lead at 16-9.

The Cougars never looked back and sealed the win with a kill by none other than Feliz, closing out the match at a 3-1 win in overall sets.

The Cougars next face Dixie State on Thursday, October 28 in St. George, Utah at 7 p.m.

About Chicago State

Chicago State University Athletics is comprised of 15 intercollegiate teams involving over 150 student-athletes that compete in basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and volleyball. CSU held memberships in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and NCAA Division II before transitioning to NCAA Division I in 1994. Melvin Bland was the first CSU student-athlete to gain NAIA All-American status in 1974 as a wrestler. Fred Evans became the first black swimmer ever to win a national championship in 1975. CSU's women's basketball team earned a spot in the 2011 Women's Basketball Invitational and CSU's men's basketball team won the 2013 Great West Conference Tournament title and made an appearance in the CollegeInside.com Postseason Tournament (CIT).  The Men's Outdoor Track & Field 4x100-Meter Relay team were 2019 Honorable Mention All-Americans and WAC Champions. Their feat marked the first time the Chicago State's men's track & field program was represented at the national meet. 

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