BOX SCORE

SEASIDE, Calif. — It was a tough home opener for the Cal State Monterey Bay volleyball team. The Otters got off to a slow start and played from behind for much of the match as Humboldt State earned a 25–18, 25–18, 25–23 win Friday night in The Kelp Bed.

CSUMB got double digit kills from outside hitters Julia Ashen (North Salinas HS), who finished with 11, and Jessica Malcolm (Lodi HS), who added 10, but got precious little production from the balance of the lineup. The Otters finished with a season low of 37 digs. Their two total blocks matched their lowest effort in that department since Sept. 15, 2012, a span of 58 matches.
 The first two sets were closer than the final scores indicated. Set 1 was tied at 10–10 and was still a 3–point set at 20–17 before the Lumberjacks scored five of the final six points to put it away. Likewise, the Otters were within 19–17 in Set 2 before a set–ending 6–1 run secured the win for Humboldt.

HUMBOLDT STATE 3, CAL ST. MONTEREY BAY 0
OTTERS	18	18	23			0–5 (0–1)
LUMBERJACKS	25	25	25			4–1 (1–0)
CSUMB Leaders: Julia Ashen (11kills,6 digs, 1 block); Jessica   Malcolm (10 kills, 6 digs); Leana Moleta (2 aces)
Humboldt Leaders: Symone Hayden (12 kills); Ashley Ownes (6 kills,   4 blocks); Haley Biles (11 digs).

The Otters led by as many as five points midway through the third set before Humboldt rallied to tie the set at 18–18. It stayed tight until Katherine Rifilato and Nicole Bewley recorded back–to–back kills to break a 23–23 tie to take the set and the match.

The Otters will have their work cut out for them as they seek their first win of 2014 Saturday night against No. 8 ranked Cal State San Bernardino. First serve is 7 p.m. in The Kelp Bed.