Box Score

POMONA – You could say there is little difference between Cal State Monterey Bay and Cal Poly Pomona. In the teams' earlier meeting in Seaside, the Broncos pulled out a five-game win. 

Friday night, it was the Otters' turn to win in five. 

Despite a match and career-high 26 kills from Kristin McNeese, the Broncos fought to the end, only to lose 25-20, 28-26, 19-25, 31-33, 15-12 to visiting CSU Monterey Bay in California Collegiate Athletic Association play. 

The Broncos are 11-17 overall and 8-13 heading into the season finale Saturday night against San Francisco State. The Otters improved to 13-18, 7-14. 

The Otters earned a Game 1 victory, thanks to just one attack error. And it looked like it might have been a long night for CPP when it trailed 24-16 in Game 2. 

But CPP scrambled back into the game when it rallied with nine straight points. Senior Audrey Driscoll had two service aces and senior Elizabeth Diaz had three kills in that span and CPP led 25-24. 

A pair of kills from the Otters' Alisha Thomas and Elizabeth Hanna put CSUMB ahead 26-25. After a Courtney Alberi kill tied the game, Thomas and Melanie Lashbrook threw down kills and the Otters went into intermission with a 2-0 lead. 

In Game 3, the Broncos fired a collective .300 on the attack (13-4-30) and earned the victory to set up a most exciting Game 4. 

CSUMB led 24-22 and it looked like the Otters would seal the win. But CPP tied the game on a CSUMB attack error and a kill from Diaz and the game was tied at 24-24. 

Four times CPP was on the verge of a loss, but the Broncos earned a point each time and they eventually led 29-28 and 30-28 on kills from McNeese. 

The game was tied at 30-30 and 31-31, before the Broncos earned the win with an attack error and block assists from Kellie Hall and Diaz and the Broncos forced Game 5. 

CSUMB got out front 10-3 before the Broncos rallied back. Alberi caught fire with four kills and CPP cut the lead to 11-9. 

The Otters forged ahead 13-10 on a kill from Thomas. Kerri Sudarsana fired a kill for CSUMB after a Thomas attack error and CSUMB led 14-11. 

Thomas gave CPP a chance with another attack error, but she redeemed herself with a game and match-ending kill. 

The Otters fired a .216 attack (66/28/176) to CPP's .240 (67/26/171). The Otters had 13 service aces and had a Game 5 .357 attack percentage in the win. 

Thomas finished with 24 kills for CSUMB and Rheann Fall had 10. 

Diaz had 16 for the Broncos and Alberi finished with 14. 

The Broncos will honor their four seniors – Diaz, Jasmine Davis, Driscoll and Carissa Gurney – in a pre-match ceremony against SFSU.