BOX SCORE

TURLOCK, Calif. — The Cal State Monterey Bay volleyball team faced, what has become for it, a lethal combination of playing on the road and playing a game five Friday night at Cal State Stanislaus. Despite coming from behind twice, the Otters fell to the underdog Warriors 25-23, 23-25, 25-16, 21-25, 15-12 in Fitzpatrick Arena.

CSUMB (12-14, 6-12 CCAA) has now lost 13 consecutive CCAA road matches dating back to last season. The Otters haven't won a five–setter in conference play since defeating San Francisco State on Nov. 2 2010.

Spoiled by the setback was a career night from freshman middle blocker Janai Johnson, who recorded season highs of 16 kills and 19 points. She added six blocks while hitting .350 for the evening.

Sophomore setter Kelsey Johnston just missed her first triple-triple, finishing with 43 assists, 10 digs and a career-high nine kills. Sophomore outside hitter Julia Ashen added her fourth consecutive double-double and 11th of the season with 15 kills and a personal record -tying 17 digs.

Comebacks were the theme for the Otters all night Friday. CSUMB rallied both within sets and in the match as a whole to push Stanislaus to the brink, but ultimately couldn't unlock the door to the road win it has been fighting for all season.

The first Otter comeback came in the first set, when they rallied from 17-9 down to tie the set at 23-23, thanks in large part to three kills and a block by Johnson.

But the Warriors had a theme of their own, and that was thwarting CSUMB comeback efforts just short of their goals. A Melissa Bishop kill and an Otter error allowed Stanislaus to escape with the set.

CSUMB knotted the match with a 25-23 victory in a second set featuring seven ties and five lead changes. This time, kills by Lacee Ventura and Johnston broke a 23-23 tie in favor of the Otters. Set three proved to be the only blowout of the quintet as Stanislaus pulled away midway through the stanza and didn't look back in a 25-16 victory.

The Otters appeared ready to blow past the Warriors in the fourth set, but Stanislaus rallied from a 9-2 deficit to tie the set at 17-17. Ashen took control at that point, providing three kills and a block to create a 4-0 burst that gave the Otters control en route to the 25-21 win, forcing the fifth set.

Stanislaus used an early 6-0 run to take an 8-4 lead in the fifth, setting up the final CSUMB comeback of the night. The Otters ralliedto within 11-10 before a service error deflated the comeback effort and helped the Warriors hang on for the win.

CSUMB will look to turn its road fortunes around Saturday when it travels up Highway 99 to face Chico State. The Otters will play at Cal State East Bay Tuesday evening before returning to The Kelp Bed to face nationally-ranked Cal State San Bernardino and UC San Diego to conclude their 2012 season.