“The community is our weapon;” Cal State Bakersfield volleyball back in action under new head coach

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — CSUB volleyball is back. Sort of.

A pretty impressive crowd for the volleyball girls at Cal State Bakersfield this past Saturday. Even more impressive when you realize, this was just a scrimmage.

“We started off at a really strong point with how fun it was,” said first-year head coach Kristen Wright. “I think people are going to want to come back.”

A hearty “welcome back” for the Bakersfield native, who played ball at Stockdale High just down the street, as she met with friends and family after the match’s conclusion. For the players, it was also a sort of introduction. They were available after the match for pictures and autographs for fans.

“Having our community out here supporting us and being there for us, it makes all the difference, and we definitely felt that love,” said junior libero Analiese Gagliano.

“I haven’t seen a crowd interact like that anywhere else,” said senior middle blocker Jordyn Waite-Ward, in her first season with CSUB. “I’m a Bakersfield local, and a big emphasis in the bond I have with coach is that we know how important the community is here.”

Of course, a scrimmage like this, against another team, is for a lot more than just community. It’s a test for Wright’s squad to perform under a true game-like atmosphere. In this contest, probably safe to say they passed; the Runners “won” this one, 3 sets to 1.

“I’m thankful to my staff and administration. There’s a lot going on in a traditional spring game to run it like a match,” said Wright. “We got everybody in and got to see a lot in game mode. I see a lot of progress.”

After a tumultuous 2025 that saw the Runners finish 6-24 overall, 3-15 in conference, it’s a performance, and result, that CSUB is hoping will become common under Wright. It’s not the first time she’s inherited a squad that was producing, let’s say, less than desirable results. The University of North Florida Ospreys finished 13-19 before Wright took the helm in 2018. She’d finish her 8-year tenure as the program’s winningest coach, three short of 200 total.

“It’s exhilarating to think about the potential of this team, and where these coaches want to take this program,” said Gagliano. “We’re all in this and we’re excited to see what they have in store.”

“It’s super great that she’s local,” said senior setter Luiza Da Cruz. “She has a really good sense of community. So she knows the people.”

Knowing the people is one thing. Getting them to come out to games is another.

But this isn’t a bad start.

“The community is our weapon. A lot of the schools in the Big West, they may not have the capacity to have the community that we have,” said Wright. “Here, this is the place to be. And we want to put the effort in to make this fun, for kids, for families, and put the spotlight on them. They can help us win.”

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