Their mission, which they chose to accept, was to take on ColoradoState, the fifth-ranked team in the nation. Maybe not an impossibletask, but certainly Mission Improbable.

San Diego State amazingly took a two-games-to-none lead — thenself-destructed.

“We had opportunities, but we let them slip,” said SDSU coach MarkWarner.

“We didn’t get it done.”

The Aztecs (16-12, 8-5 Mountain West Conference) played nearlyflawless volleyball in the first game, topping CSU (26-2, 12-1 MWC)15-9. They were led early on by senior Monet Solberg with four kills,as the team hit .357 with only four hitting errors.

Mistakes crept their way into SDSU’s play in the second game, butdespite hitting only .176, the Aztecs were able to pull off a 16-14win to take a 2-0 lead.

In the third game, the front line of the CSU Rams looked like thatof the St. Louis Rams as it put on a blocking clinic. CSU stifled theSDSU offense with seven team blocks, holding the Aztecs to an .022hitting percentage.

Playing the part of Orlando Pace was junior Angela Knopf, who hadtwo solo blocks and assisted on three more. She added two kills inthe game as the Rams rolled to a 15-6 win.

By the fourth game, SDSU was completely off its game as onemistake after another hindered its bid at the upset. Aztec playerssuffered from “I-got-it, you-get-it” syndrome repeatedly. As theyfell further behind, they committed numerous net violations and beganspraying their hits all over Peterson Gym.

“We tried to bury the ball instead of placing it,” said SDSUsenior Amy Hallquist. “We played tough, but couldn’t get out of thathole.

“We had them, but ….”

But the Rams took the fourth game 15-12 to tie the match. CSU wasled in game four by Courtney Cox with six kills, with a little helpfrom her friend Krista Swartzendruber, who added four.

By the fifth game, any momentum the Aztecs may have had nowbelonged to the Rams. SDSU jumped out to a 4-1 lead, but led again byKnopf, CSU completed the comeback by winning game five 15-9. Thematch ended on back-to-back blocks by Knopf.

“We gave up on ourselves a little,” said Solberg. “We startedplaying too tentatively, that’s when the mistakes came.

“It’s just so frustrating.”

The Rams were led by Cox and Swartzendruber with 19 kills each, asHallquist led SDSU with 14.

Knopf, who finished with 15 kills and 14 blocks, said after thematch that she was impressed with SDSU’s effort.

“They’re tremendous athletes,” she said. “They’re a really scrappyteam. They put a lot out on the court and played a great game.

“I have a tremendous amount of respect for them.”