Fresno, Calif. – In action for the first time in 2024, Academy of Art volleyball was within striking distance throughout both of its matches despite dropping a 3-0 (25-17, 25-18, 25-23) decision to Chico State and another 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-11) result to Fresno Pacific as part of the season-opening Sunbird Volleyball Classic on Friday inside the Special Events Center.

MATCH #1 – CHICO 3, ART U 0
After the Wildcats built a 15-6 advantage out of the gate, graduate student middle blocker Chandra Reed delivered a kill to initiate a 5-2 Knights which soon gave way to four consecutive points by Academy of Art. Graduate student opposite Claire Ricard sent down two kills in the stretch that brought ART U within three at 18-15, but Chico State executed one final push to secure the opening set 25-17.

Tied 6-6 after pairs of putaways by Ricard and sophomore middle blocker/outside hitter Alohi Garcia, the second frame saw both teams utilize short runs before Reed had her hands on back-to-back blocks and recorded a kill en route to a 12-12 deadlock. The Wildcats would steadily gain an advantage with three and four-point unanswered streaks toward the eventual 25-18 victory.

A tightly-played third set had ART U make its move from 13-13 as a 5-2 run featured kills from three Knights. Academy of Art's 18-16 lead was short-lived with Chico State responding then, despite Alohi Garcia's kill followed by a service ace late, the Wildcats ended the contest at a 25-23 final.

MATCH #2 – FPU 3, ART U 0
The Knights put together a 6-1 run for early separation with junior right side/middle blocker Katherine Von Kraut connecting on multiple kills as well as a solo block, but Fresno Pacific worked its way back to several tie scores including a mirrored moment at 22-22. FPU then proceeded to score three of the last four points to triumph 25-23.

Using a 7-2 run in the early stages of the second set, the Sunbirds led by as many as seven before answered with kills from Von Kraut and Reed making the margin 15-11. The sides exchanged points down the stretch with the Knights surging for six of eight scores while fighting off three set points before the tough 25-22 victory for FPU. That preceded a 10-0 burst not long into the third frame which enabled the home team to secure its 25-11 score for the win.

The Urban Knights begin 2024 at 0-2 overall with Alohi Garcia turning in a match-high 10 kills in the opening contest along with Reed's eight kills to just one error over 17 attempts (.412) then another five kills again with one error in the day's finale which also saw Ricard finish with 10 kills. Senior setter Elly McInerney started with 17 assists then logged 15 while sophomore libero LC-Reece Nakagawa contributed 11 digs plus another 14 in the nightcap.

Chico State, led by Kassandra Nall's eight kills, opens the year 1-1 after falling to FPU in its second match of the year. Meanwhile, the Sunbirds move to 2-1 with their win supported by Makayla Smith's 16 kills, and split with Stan State and the Wildcats in their first two matches.

ART U will return to action tomorrow with matchups against Stanislaus State (11:30 a.m.), who topped both FPU and Jessup on Friday, and Jessup (7 p.m.), who fell to Dominican after its loss to the Warriors.