Matadors’ Waiting Game Begins After Breakdown

The Cal State Northridge men’s volleyball team couldn’t determine its fate.

So after the Matadors lost to top-ranked UCLA, 15-12, 15-10, 15-7, Thursday night at Northridge, they can only hurry up and wait.

The Matadors (14-12, 8-10 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) must rely on other teams for help in their pursuit of the eighth and final spot in the MPSF playoff tournament, which begins April 19.

They are idle until Tuesday’s regular-season finale against UC Santa Barbara but their fate will be decided 2,500 miles away in Hawaii, where the Rainbows play host to USC in MPSF matches Friday and Saturday.

If the Rainbows sweep USC, the Matadors will miss the playoffs for the first time since 1989.

“I’ll be praying,” said outside hitter Chad Strickland, who led the Matadors with 16 kills Thursday.

Northridge could have clinched a spot in the tournament with a victory over the Bruins (19-3, 15-2), who have been more than a thorn in Northridge’s side--they’re more like a garden of rose bushes.

UCLA has won 13 in a row against the Matadors, including 39 of 41 games.

“When you play UCLA, you do weird things, stuff you haven’t done all year, like dig a ball that’s over 20 feet out of bounds,” Northridge Coach John Price said.

The Bruins were the ones who acted weird in the beginning. Eight service errors and poor passing helped the 14th-ranked Matadors to a 9-7 lead in the first game.

But Northridge failed on several chances to extend the lead, including an overpass by UCLA at 9-8 that was drilled into the net by Matador middle blocker Sean Callahan.

Throughout the match, Northridge failed to develop an attack from the right side. Opposite hitter Jason Hughes finished with five kills and nine errors in 30 attempts, a .133 hitting percentage.

“They didn’t have to block half the court,” Price said.

The Bruins received 16 kills from All-American Paul Nihipali, 15 from freshman Adam Naeve and six block assists from former Notre Dame High standout Tom Stillwell.

The Matadors hope USC wins at least one of two matches in Hawaii. Even then, they need Pacific to lose one of its last three matches. And the Matadors still must beat sixth-ranked UC Santa Barbara on Tuesday at Northridge.

“We need some help,” said Northridge outside hitter Collin Smith, who finished with 14 kills. “That’s for sure.”