By Christopher Pimentel Jr., October 27, 2026
The No. 4 West Region-ranked Cal Poly Pomona volleyball team hit an efficient .390 in its 3-0 sweep against Cal State San Marcos at home Oct. 15.
The offense accumulated 48 kills, 47 assists and only nine errors and was fueled by a combined 35 kills from right-side hitter Sarah Ybarra (19) and outside hitter Elle Walker (16). Since joining the lineup, setter Paige Bowyer has directed the offense and team to its third consecutive win, with 38 assists in the match.
The Cougars entered the match on a five-game winning streak, but CPP’s defense contained their offense, finishing with a .160 hitting percentage and zero service aces. The second set proved the worst for San Marcos, who managed just three kills and a -.111 hitting percentage while scoring only nine points.
Head coach Traci Dahl described the match as an all-around effort, highlighting the hard work the team has put in to refine their topspin, put away kills consistently and minimize errors.
“I’m really happy for them,” Dahl said. “We had 16 kills per set, 17 digs per set, two blocks per set, and we had some really nice numbers, and it was a team win. It wasn’t just one or two people. Sarah hit .679, Elle also hit .324, and Charlotte hit five. Our three pins absolutely killed it tonight. A lot of that had to do with their decision making but also Paige, our freshman setter, who’s been delivering.”
The Broncos struck early in the first set as Bowyer kickstarted the offense with three assists to Walker, alongside a kill of her own, to give CPP a 4-3 edge. Momentum shifted back-and-forth from there, with San Marcos mounting a 5-1 run before a quick response from the Broncos tied the set 17-17.
The battle remained closeknit down the stretch, with both teams leveling at 21-all before the Broncos closed the set with a 4-1 run. Ybarra dominated the final moments, scoring five of the team’s final eight points, anchored by Bowyer’s 17 assists in the set.
Ybarra praised the Broncos’ controlled intensity on defense, emphasizing the ability to keep a point alive is just as important as finishing over the net.
“Offense wins you championships, but defense wins you games,” Ybarra said. “You cannot run an offense without first digging a ball and being controlled with it, and with that high level defense, we’ve worked a lot on trying to play a ball calmly on our side and create chaos on the other side.”
The Broncos dominated the second set, not allowing a single kill to the Cougars until they built a commanding 13-4 lead. From there, it was all green and gold, as CPP racked up 15 kills to earn the set 25-9 to move within one set of the sweep.
San Marcos looked to bounce back with an early 9-6 lead in the third set, but following a service error from Cougars outside hitter Eleanor Brislen, the Broncos rode a 9-1 stampede to pull ahead 15-10.
Bowyer highlighted trust across the court as a key factor in the team’s perseverance, given her limited time with the starters. She explained how strong communication allows the Broncos to push past mistakes.
“Having trust in who’s around you is awesome,” Bowyer said. “Having that trust all around us and knowing that no matter what, we have each other’s backs. So, when one shakes it past, we are all running after that and we are getting a touch. We have that mindset for each other, and it’s a really fun environment to be in.”
From there, the offense and defense clicked in unison, allowing only five more points for the Cougars, while forcing three errors and putting away seven kills. This final push earned them the final set, 25-15, and marked the first time since Nov. 1, 2025, that the Broncos committed only one error in a set.
The final tally of nine errors also marked the lowest committed by the Broncos since they faced Menlo Sept. 12, where they committed eight.
“At one point in time, we had 30 hitting errors, 54 unforced errors against Point Loma, and we can’t win games like that,” Dahl said. “You need confidence, and we’ve had our edge and flows, and I think we’re on the upside.”
Across the final two sets, the Broncos held the Cougars to a combined 15 kills on 65 attempts, resulting in a .011 hitting percentage, with the early third set marking the only time CPP trailed in the closing sets. The Broncos are currently second in the California Collegiate Athletic Association in opponent hitting percentage (.170) and opponent kills per set (10.84).
Following the win, CPP improved its record to 15-3 and 7-1 in CCAA play. However, a loss two days later to No. 8 nationally ranked Cal State San Bernardino kept the Broncos third in CCAA, lowering their lead over Cal State Los Angeles to just one game.
As a result, Dahl emphasized the importance of earning conference wins as the season comes to a close. The Broncos will face Cal State Dominguez Hills and Cal Poly Humboldt this week in hopes of continuing to improve their CCAA record.
“It’s a tight race,” Dahl said. “You got Fresno with no losses. You got San Bern with one loss to Fresno. We’ve got us. We took a loss to LA, and our last match is against Fresno. So, if we do our job, that could boil down to the conference championship.”
Feature image courtesy of CPP Athletics