Cal Poly then faced Cal State East Bay in the semifinals on Friday evening, earning itself another three-set sweep (25-15, 28-26, 25-23). Hamlin once again led the team with 15 kills and hit at a .500, while Desi Martin earned nine kills and Ally Wilder added seven.
The Broncos moved the ball extremely well with 45 assists, 38 of those coming from Kira Zimmerman as they earned themselves a spot in the finals.
It was championship night as No. 17 Cal Poly Pomona took on No.1 ranked Cal State San Bernardino for the rights to be called this year’s CCAA Champions.
The two teams had already matched up twice against each other this season, splitting the series.
Opening set went in the favor of the Broncos as they looked like they were carrying over the momentum from their two previous games.
“Nothing is guaranteed,” senior Hamlin said. “When you know that this could be your last game, you’re going to put it all out on the court to the very last point and that’s what we did.”
CPP came out very aggressive and disciplined on the defensive end. They were able to hold the Coyotes to just a .111 hitting percentage.
Jenna Goldsberry was on fire as she had six of her 11 kills in the first set and helped the Broncos take a 1-0 lead with a 25-18 win in the opening set.
Sets two and three were each determined by two points as both teams were leaving it all on the floor.
The Broncos held a one- point lead early in the set, but three back-to-back kills by San Bernardino’s Alexis Cardoza allowed the Coyotes to get in front 13-11 and forced CPP to take a timeout.
It was set point as CSUSB held a 24-18 lead over the Broncos. Although CPP managed to fight off five set points, a final kill by the Coyotes brought the second set to an end 25-23.
The game had a total of 30 ties, 12 of which came in the third set as it was another see-saw battle between the two teams.
CPP tallied in four back-to-back points to put themselves up 14-9. The Coyotes called a timeout and were able to answer with a 5-0 themselves to tie the game at 14 apiece.
It continued to go back and forth as the teams were once again all knotted up at 20, until two kills and an attack error from the Broncos put Cal State San Bernardino back in front.
Cal Poly once again fought off two set points, but fell short as a kill by the Coyotes would end the frame 25-23 to take a 2-1 lead.
The Coyotes carried their momentum into the fourth and final set, pulling out to a 15-9 lead.
CPP kept fighting as they cut the lead to four after a kill by Karah Griffiths.
Unfortunately, the Coyotes were able to pull away and end the final set 25-18 to claim their third straight CCAA Tournament title.
Three Broncos finished with double digit kills. Hamlin with 17, Andrea Bosnic with 13 and Goldsberry with 11. Goldsberry also added 17 digs to the stat sheet for her double-double performance.
Ally Wilder added eight kills of her own, hitting at a .412 and Desi Martin also tallied in five kills.
CCAA Freshman of The Year, Kira Zimmerman, finished the night with 46 assists.
On the defensive end, Chloe Fields-Owens was extremely impactful with 22 digs and 18 from Alex Bollier.
Hamlin, Bosnic and Zimmerman were named to the CCAA All-Tournament Team for their performance over the weekend.
“We will learn from this,” head coach Rosie Wegrich said. “This team will be very resilient. I know the maturity of this team will respond and we’re excited about the selection announcement.”
Broncos earned the 4th seed in the West region and will take on Azusa Pacific Thursday.
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